ASTONISHING LATE SEASON FORM FOR TS1-UK

It was bound to happen.  A blog published here highlighting a late season personal best, and then within 24 hours came four more spectacular sprints from a Trackspeed1-UK squad who have quite literally been on fire this year.

Headlining the performances at Lee Valley Athletics Centre on Wednesday evening was again Niclas Baker, who shattered his previous lifetime best over 200m with a 21.33s run.

Having been discussing training for the coming winter with coach John Powell online only hours earlier, and his need to improve basic speed for running 400m next year, he clearly decided to start early!  He had two 21.41s runs wind aided to his name before that, but otherwise had run only 21.99 legally.

Chaka Maillett - sub-11 at long last! 

It was an inspirational performance which followed three other super sprints over 100m by Tracksped1-UK training partners.  Chaka Maillett had been tantalizingly close to cracking the 11-second barrier at Bromley some weeks earlier when he clocked 11.00s, but at Lee Valley he broke through at last with a fastest ever 10.92s.

Also, running the shorter sprint was Nima Jam, whose form this year has seen a modest club level sprinter convert to a potentially classy act, and he produced the second fastest time of his life with 11.36s

Meanwhile, back in the 200m, former European Junior Champion David Bolarinwa cracked 21 seconds for the first time in 3 years, clocking an impressive 20.97s.

“I nearly fell over when I was messaged these times,” said coach John Powell who was away for this meeting.  “We have had some great results this year – no championship medals, but it is a squad rebuilding now, and poised to compete with the best again.

“I’ve been again taking ideas from literally international sources, and the programme I am already putting together for this winter’s training phase is very exciting indeed, and elaborates on what we have been doing this past 11 months.  Everyone should be resting up now for most of August, and then getting back into the groove with renewed vigor after this season in September.

“We have a terrific group of athletes in Trackspeed1-UK again now, and there are many who are poised to turn heads in 2017, assuming the vultures stay away!”

GREAT-ISH' AND A WINDUP TO COME!

With the domestic season all but done, Trackspeed1-UK athletes cannot stop improving their lifetime best performances, as demonstrated recently by Blackheath and Bromley Harrier, Ishmael Smith-John.

The 21-year-old has consistently sliced fractions off his personal best over 100m this year, and signed off from his 2016 campaign with another improvement at Hendon last weekend.

Ishmael Smith-John put his pre-season training in the US
(above) to good use this summer with PB's in abundance!

Competing in the London Inter-Club Challenge meeting, he also improved his 200m best, with both performances wind-aided, but with the 100m legally so, and the 200m only just over the limit at 2.2m/s.

“It’s been a great season in terms of improving times,” commented Ishmael afterwards, “although I have to say my targets were a little faster, but it’s always good to aim high, and I just have to stay patient - I know it will come in the very near future.  Meanwhile, it’s time to rest up and be ready to go again for 2017.”

Coach John Powell, abroad for the meeting, sent a message of congratulation to his protégée, commenting:

“It’s been a truly fantastic year in many ways.  Ishmael’s late PB is in many ways the icing on the cake, but it’s not just that – the squad have gelled so well as a group.  The focus is there, the work ethic is there, and the humour is there too.

“We aren’t allowed to say too much right now, but people need to keep a look out on Channel 4 this autumn – and when we know it’s being broadcast we will advertise on this blog.  It’s a tongue-in-cheek programme that provided me the opportunity for the wind-up of a lifetime for 6 of our athletes earlier this summer.  I’ve barely stopped laughing now!”