Manchester Sportcity Grand Prix – 31 May 2014 – Results

Races: 29
Finishers: 319
PB’s: 153 (48%)
Power of Ten: Here

Pictures

Pictures from the meeting can be found HERE
Many thanks to Adrian Royle

Report

800m

Lynsey Sharp’s progress since winning the B 800m at Watford has been mightily impressive. There the 23-year-old European champion ran 2:03.90 and then improved to 2:02.42 in Belgium to show the Scotland selectors she was more than ready to lead the team to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
On Saturday she stepped up a gear again as she followed the pace through the bell in 58.5secs and the tracked Hannah Tarver as she dug in down the back straight.
At 600m Sharp delivered her renowned kick and while she tired in the closing 50 metres she was a worthy winner in a season’s best of 2:01.68.
“I love running at Sportcity, it is my favourite track as I set all my PBs here,” said Sharp. “I probably kicked too early and I really felt it in the last 50 metres. That was tough.”
That Sharp was tested as hard as she was largely due to Tarver as she ensured the pace didn’t falter when the pacemaker dropped out at 400m.
The 20-year-old Edinburgh AC athlete was rewarded for her bravery with a PB of 2:02.51, which is her third PB in successive races – from 2:04.28 to 2:03.13 and now her first sub 2:03 – but she was pipped for second by fast-finishing Ireland international Rose-Ann Galligan of Gloucester AC, who ran a season’s best of 2:02.07.

In only her second 800m of the season after a low-key league opener 20-year-old Katy Brown produced a superb run to win the B race.
Off a 60 seconds first lap reigning Scotland champion Brown, Alexandra Bell and junior Molly Long had opened a gap on the chasing pack. At 600m Brown kicked hard and kept her form well to win in 2:04.26 which clipped thee seconds off her PB.
“I did not come here not to run a PB and I had 2:04 in mind as I thought 2:03 would have been pushing it so I am delighted,” said Brown, who has just graduated from the University of Cumbria and is based in Dumfries.
Bell came into the race with her confidence high after slashing six seconds off her PB over 1500m at a recent BMC meeting in Trafford but admitted to being slightly nervous for her first 800m of the season. She needn’t have worried as she shaved 0.5secs off her best with 2:05.10.
“I am really happy with that, there is a lot more to come,” said Bell.
Long fought tenaciously down the home straight to clock a PB of 2:05.67 and just missed the World Junior Qualifying standard of 2:05.0.
“I am pleased with that time in only my third 800m of the season,” said Long, who beat her junior rivals Charlotte Cayton-Smith and Chelsea Jarvis.
Robert Needham was the surprise winner as favourite Chris O’Hare, who is one of Britain’s top 1500m runners and a World Championships finalist in Moscow last year, ended up in last place.
Needham’s previous best performance in a BMC Grand Prix had been to finish third in the C race at Oxford last season. This was his first start in the A and the 20-year-old took his opportunity with relish as he broke 49secs for the first time with a personal best of 1:48.19 for a clear win.
Needham was obviously delighted with his win and to claim the scalp of O’Hare though the Scot, who looked impressive in winning the Westminster road mile the previous weekend, didn’t seem unduly perturbed with his run.
After leading in the back straight Chis O’Hare surprisingly fell away in the closing 200m to clock1:51.47 over three seconds behind Needham.
“I really started to tie up in the last 200m as the other guys came barrelling by me and it was really hard to keep my composure,” said O’Hare.
“To be honest I try and avoid 800m as I hate them.”
In the B race Ben Coldray followed up his PB in the 1500m at Watford with another best time for an impressive victory.
The St Mary’s University student clipped half a sec off his PB with a time of 1:50.73 to finish almost a second clear of David Proctor and Lewis Lloyd.
“It was okay but I wanted to break 1mins 50secs this evening,” said Coldray.

1500m

Jake Wightman faces an anxious wait to see whether he has made the Scotland team for the Commonwealths.
The 19-year-old followed up his PB of 3:42.01 at the BMC Gold Standard event at Trafford on May 20th and then a 3:43.89 in Belgium four days later with another PB of 3:41.40.
That means he has twice run inside the 3:42.2 standard set by the Scotland selectors and is ranked third on the national rankings behind Chris O’Hare and David Bishop.
“I am so pleased with that,” said Wightman, who led from the front once pacemaker James Brewer dropped out at 900metres.
Niall Brooks tracked Wightman but couldn’t find that extra gear on the final circuit and was caught by Chris Warburton.
Further back the most significant result came from Bracknell’s Shaun Wylie as the 19-year-old clocked a PB of 3:43.68, just 0.68secs outside the World Juniors qualifying mark of 3:43.0.
With 200m to go Cameron Boyek looked a certain winner of the B race but 22-year-old Dan Studley timed his finish to perfect to snatch victory on the line in a personal best of 3:43.64.
“That was two seconds off my best and that means it is the fourth successive year I have run a PB over 1500m,” said Studley.
“I felt bad for Cameron as he bravely led the whole way but I just managed to get by him in the final 50 metres. I have a British Men’s League match now before the UK Under 23s and then try and get close to 3mins 40secs.”
Nonetheless 20-year-old Boyek still ran a PB of 3:42.95 so that is very encouraging.

Charlene Thomas fought another epic duel against Melissa Courtney with the same result as Watford as the more experienced runner got the verdict by 0.03secs, 4:11.38 to 4:11.41, the latter a big PB for Courtney and the former a season’s best for Thomas.
“I am chipping away at the time and tonight was better but it doesn’t seem to be getting any easier,” said Thomas.
“It was a great battle again with Millie and I’m sure it was very exciting for the spectators. The first lap was good but then we dropped the pace which was a shame because I know Millie was looking for sub 4:10. After that it became really hard for us on our own.”
Courtney was pleased with her PB. “I am only slightly disappointed that I finished just 0.41secs of the Wales B qualifying standard but it was a great race,” said Courtney.
Natalie Shaw showed a terrific turn of speed to win the B race in a time of 4:25.74 and smash her personal best by virtually five seconds.
The Derby runner just edged out Rachael Franklin (4:25.90), also a PB, as the pair finished well clear of the field.
“Seeing my boyfriend Richard Weir run a PB of 3:45.19 in the 1500 A race just before really spurred me on,” said Shaw.
“Also my previous coach (Dave Sunderland) passed away in February and for a while we were drifting along but now Spencer Duval has agreed to coach us and his sessions seem to be paying off.
“As Dave used to say make sure you enjoy it and make it hurt – well, I did both tonight and I am pleased to get a big PB.”

3000m STEEPLECHASE

Arguably the biggest surprise of the night came in the women’s steeplechase. Only four women started and three finished when Nicola Rogers took a heavy fall at the water jump but Leeds City’s Rachel Bamford looked superb as she led throughout to win in 9:54.57.
That not only smashed the 24-year-old’s personal best of 10:24.43 to put her third in the UK Rankings but was inside the England B standard of 10.05.0 for the Commonwealth Games so little wonder that she was delighted.
“That was such a big surprise,” said Bamford. “I had no expectations for tonight’s race as I went over on my ankle on Wednesday and then felt I was coming down a cold on Friday.
“So I just went for it on Saturday and didn’t blow up! I am just so pleased with that.”
It has been a long time since Jermain Mays ran a steeplechase so he was encouraged by his second place in 8:54.43 behind Daniel Lundgren of Sweden (8:50.54).
“That was my first steeplechase for seven years so it has been a long time,” said Mays.
“I was definitely a bit rusty and it will take a bit of time to get back into the groove and rhythm of the event but I’ll give it a go and get stuck into the event.”

5000m

Showing the same determination as her friend Jo Pavey did at Watford Helen Clitheroe took on the race once the pacemaker dropped aside and won in impressive style in 15:24.40 to go third on the UK Rankings.
“I was on my own for a long way once the pacemaker had dropped out but I was getting terrific support around the track and I felt good at the pace,” said Clitheroe.
“I knew there would be no excuses tonight and I had to get out there and run hard to see if I could get the qualifying time.”
She did that getting inside the B mark of 15:30.0 with Laura Whittle finishing strongly for a season’s best of 15:36.62 while Susan Partridge and Stevie Stockton both ran PBs.
The men’s race saw a comfortable win for Johnny Mellor with Dewi Griffiths working hard for a PB and agonisingly just missing the 14 minutes barrier by 0.57secs.
The story of the B race was 17-year-old Zak Miller’s brave attempt to run inside the World Junior Championships qualifying standard of 14:00.00.
At halfway he was spot-on but was running on his own 50 metres clear of the field. It was an impossible task and inevitably he was caught and was swallowed up on the last lap but should take great heart from his brave effort and a PB of 14:29.54.