This post contains some exciting, hot-off-the-press, club news! So if you don’t have time to read the whole post, please skip to the end and take a look!
August is the month where many T&F issues are decided, and C&C teams are right in there at the heart of battle.
What a performance we saw at the July SAL meeting at Cambridge! The Thurrock meet, in June, was a disappointment. However, any team, or individual, can have a bad day, that’s all part of sport. The important thing is the reaction that follows. And what a reaction we got! Amongst the opposition on the day were the two teams that occupied the top two places in the league. We beat them both! We beat EVERYONE! As a result, our league position, with one match remaining, looks much healthier. However, there can be no sitting back. We want to finish the season strongly to really cement our place at this level. So let’s have another good turn-out at Hemel Hempstead on 17th August, and end the season with a flourish!
The EMAC league has also been so exciting this year! At the time of writing we are awaiting the results of the final meeting. These will determine if our teams make it to the final, or not. Both the Men and Ladies have a chance. Whatever happens, it’s been a great season, with new people joining the teams, just fitting-in and adding to the wonderful team spirit and camaraderie that is Masters athletics. The picture shows just some of the team at that final match.
Someone who many of you will know, John Morley, decided to retire from competitive running at this last Masters match. He has been a very popular and really key member of many C&C teams since 2000, nearly 25 years ago! He had a fittingly fantastic final race. We’ll really miss his inspirational presence in the team, but really hope that we’ll still see him around club.
Our EYAL team has finished several places higher this season compared to last, and have comfortably qualified for the Plate Final. A good turn-out out there could produce an exciting result, we certainly have no-one to fear. Let’s be there and give it our very best shot!
Very exciting results in the EAL too! Every one of our teams, that’s U13/15/17 and Seniors, of both genders, have made it to the final. Fantastic results, now we need to cap the season off with a cracking final performance!
Well done to all the C&C members who represented Cambridgeshire at the National Schools Championships. It’s such an achievement to make it to these Championships where athletes who went on to became Olympians, such as Paula Radcliffe, still hold Championship records. Massive congratulations to Finn MacLennan who came second in the U15 boys 1500m.
Also, equally massive congratulations to Liam Conway, who represented G.B. at the recent U18’s European Championships. His first G.B. vest. What an achievement for him and his coach, Ric Park.
In other club matters, you may have noticed a slightly different look to the Club website. It recent months it has been given a real overhaul by Wing Wong. It’s not completely done yet, but we are really grateful to Wing for all the time and effort that he has put into it.
Our club membership levels are good, and we currently have around 200 youngsters on the waiting list. And this is before the athletics start at the Olympic Games! Once they get underway, previous history has shown that even more will feel inspired to get involved with our great sport.
Something that could help this situation is for more members, or parents, to get involved in coaching. As the club develops, we will always need more coaches to help advance our athletes, and more officials too, to ensure that we continue to put on T&F meetings to the high standards that we have become used to.
Take a look at the link below. It explains the exciting step-by-step journey to support the club, and the sport, in either of these roles.
We’d love to hear from you, and we will support you through that journey, paying for your courses, and by being a source of help and advice whenever you need it.
Coaches & Officials | England Athletics | UK Athletics
It’s a great thing to feel that you have helped someone become a better athlete, or simply enjoy a training session. There’s a wonderful feeling of satisfaction at the end of an athletics meeting that has run smoothly, knowing that you have played your part in that.
Please let us know if you’d like to get involved and start your journey in becoming a club hero!
And now the exciting news that I mentioned at the start.
Cambridge and Coleridge A.C. have been shortlisted for two Eastern Regional awards:
“Club of the Year”, and
“Community Project of the Year”.
The Community Project would be a recognition for the extraordinary effort that Club Vice Chairman, Mo Park, has put in for over a decade in supporting the development of the new track at Carver, and then, since it’s opening last October, in developing a new C&C base there. That has involved building up a new coaching team, attracting new athletes, and countless other things, as you can imagine.
Now, I know that I may have a slight bias, but when I look at the incredible amount of work put in by our amazing team of volunteers, the quality and spirit of our athletes, our fantastic disability group, and so much more, I feel we deserve to win both of these awards!
This is where you can help. You can support us by voting. Voting opened on Tuesday 30th July and will close on Sunday 11th August at midnight. Follow this link to do so:https://www.englandathletics.org/VolVote
We need to vote, vote, vote! Don’t forget to vote twice, once for each of these awards.
We will send out more reminders. In the meantime, have a wonder August, and very best of luck with your training and competing!