Primary school cross-country out of the blocks

4:17pm Tuesday 10th April 2001

The first ever Barnet Primary Schools Cross-Country Championships were held at Copthall Stadium on Thursday.

David Barr (Holly Park) won the boys' race and Ruby Blevings (Danegrove) took the honours in the girls' run.

Barr clocked 7min 39sec, with William Brown (St Mary's), 8min 15sec runner-up, and Patrick Kendall (Quainton Hall) third in 8min 27sec.

Fourth was Shane Thomas (Danegrove) in 8.32, followed by Kenny Nicholson, 8.33, and George Hill, 8.34, both of Underhill Junior.

St Mary's (31 points) won the team contest, from Danegrove (44), Sunnyfields (56) and Underhill Junior (68).

Running for St Mary's were Brown, James Lambert (seventh), Peter Renner (eighth), Oliver Jones (ninth) and Joshua Vatish (tenth).

In the girls run, Blevings, 7min 38sec, won from Katherine Robinson (Underhill Junior), 7.46, with Mary Kyekumbya, 7.47, and Sherise Binns, 7.48, third and fourth respectively, for St Mary's.

Aneka Bogle (Sunnyfields), 7.59, was fifth, and Kerry Vatish (Danegrove), 8.01, sixth.

St Mary's (25 points) won from Danegrove (31), Sunnyfields (35) and Underhill Junior (49).

Also running for St Mary's were Christina Kontoghorghi, seventh and Gemma Barker, 12th.

There were also Year Seven races for boys and girls, with Billy Phillips (Hendon) and Lara Clarke (Hendon) showing the way home to their rivals.

Lara was over a minute clear of her nearest challenger.

Results: Boys: 1 Billy Phillips, 12min 15sec. 2 Taisha Yamazaki (Hendon), 12.40. 3 Chris Constantinou (Mill Hill County High), 12.43. 4 James Traynor (Finchley Catholic High), 13.01. 5 Daniel Griffiths, 13.06, 6 Richard Clarke, 12.40 (both St Mary's C of E High).

Teams: 1. Hendon 25 points; 2 Mill Hill County High 39; 3. St Mary's 47; 4. Finchley Catholic High 76; 5. Whitefields 87.

Girls: 1. Lara Clarke 5mins 40secs; 2. Camille Olsen (St Mary's C of E), 6.54; 3. Rachel Kettle, 7.06; 4. Lorna Whitney, 7-51 (both Mill Hill County High); 5. Dasho Dakhno-Cogger (St Mary's C of E), 5-57; 6. Iman Abbott (Hendon), 7.59.

Teams: 1. Mill Hill County High 26 points; 2. Hendon 33; 3. St Mary's Cof E High 37; 4. Whitefields 61.

This was the first schools' meeting sponsored by Barnet and District AC and Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers, who intend to organise more.

Shaftesbury Barnet's women came first and the men second in the Southern Counties Road Relay Championships at Milton Keynes on Sunday.

They qualified for the National Championships at Sutton Coldfield on April 29.

In the women's race, comprising six 3.5-mile circuits, Shaftesbury Barnet clocked 1hr 59min 55secs with Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow runners-up (2.02.05) and Highgate Harriers (2.04.38) third.

Shaftesbury's second strings were the first 'B' team to finish, in sixth place, and qualified for the nationals.

In the men's contest, comprising six laps of five miles and six of 3.5, Shaftesbury Barnet (4hr.13.26) were runners-up to Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow (4.12.00), with Belgrave (4.16.21) third.

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