It is from this event that the bulk of the 60 strong Sussex team for the All England Schools championships at Birmingham in July will be selected. Every one of that team will be expected to have achieved a pretty tough standard and competed well on Saturday.
Unfortunately the untimely clash with the South of England U20 championships at the Crystal Palace this weekend will rob the Sussex event of most of the leading contenders in the Senior (U19) group.
Many potential team members will be heading for “Palace” in an attempt to gain the standard in the improved competition and this year there seems to be more than ever.
Ironically the senior entries for the Sussex event this year seem to be larger than in recent years.
The Intermediate (U17) and Junior (U15) age groups are largely unaffected other than Amber Anning’s decision to run up an age group and race in the U 20 400 metres at the South of England Championships in an effort to gain another standard for the Commonwealth Youth Games team next month in the Bahamas.
However it is in those lower age groups where the surprises come as new athletes emerge and we will be looking for new faces tomorrow (Saturday) as we do each year.
The South of England Championships, seniors and U20s, are being held over two days and we can look forward for a few medals from each age group to come home to Sussex athletes.
If you have any queries or want more information regarding this post, please Email Reg Hook.