Sussex athletes delivered a memorable weekend at the England Athletics Age Group Championships in Sheffield, led by a record-breaking performance from Brighton & Hove AC’s Florence Matten. Her championship-winning clearance of 3.76m in the Under 15 girls pole vault set a new British Athletics indoor age-group record and launched a weekend of national titles, podium finishes and personal bests for the county. Florence’s attention now turns to the Sussex U15 record of 3.81m, held by Lewes AC’s Gemma Tutton, which also stands as the overall GB Under 15 record.
The pole vault success continued as Lewes AC's Ava Hayes added another gold medal in the Under 20 women’s competition, clearing 3.65m to take victory. Her clubmate Bill Scott also reached the podium, earning bronze in the Under 17 men’s pole vault with a PB of 3.95m.
Sunday brought further podium success and more personal bests for Sussex athletes.
The Under-17 girls' pole vault produced one of the most memorable moments of the championships. Beth Wilson (HY AC) and Sylvie Ward (Lewes AC) could not be separated, with both clearing personal best heights of 3.25m. With identical records on countback, they shared the national title as joint champions.
Klara Novak-Wightman of Brighton & Hove AC delivered a dominant series in the Under 15 triple jump. Her winning leap of 10.90m was a new personal best and secured another national gold for Sussex.
Brighton & Hove AC athletes added two further podium finishes: Jaiten Best produced a lifetime best of 12.36m to claim silver in the Under 20 women’s triple jump. Meanwhile, Jessica Bliss ran a superb PB of 8.35 seconds in the Under 20 women’s 60m hurdles to secure another silver medal.
In the shot put, Sonny Rey Crisp (Eastbourne) rose to the occasion with a PB throw of 14.73m to take bronze and round off a highly successful championship weekend for Sussex athletes.
Across both days, the performances in Sheffield showcased the strength and depth of athletics across the county, with national titles, records and personal bests highlighting an encouraging start to the indoor season. Congratulations to all athletes who competed and to their coaches. A special shout-out to the Sussex Pole Vault coaching team led by Rick Pilling: Kirsty Wilson, Alan Easey, Dave Ward, David Tutton and James Johnston. Sussex swept the Women's Competition with wins in all three age groups.
There were several other excellent top-eight finishes not mentioned, but full results can be viewed HERE.
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