Yate Athletics Club

THE new 2016 track season at Yate Outdoor Sports Complex opened on Sunday.

This was more than usually significant for Yate and District Athletic Club as this was the first athletics meeting held there since the club assumed management responsibility for the complex.

More than three hundred athletes took part. They had travelled from all over the area with a significant contingent coming from Cardiff, Bridgend and Team Bath but the largest group were from the Yate club itself.

With the programme restricted to sprints and hurdles, the emphasis fell inevitably on the shortest races.

In all, 29 heats of 100m were run and if the weather had been kinder, there would have been 27 of the 200m.

Earlier in the meeting, there were 15 heats over 300m or 400m.

Over all four distances there were noteworthy performances.

Conditions didn’t really favour sprinters but even so three Yate athletes – Luke Lorenzi, Josh Snook, who is still under-20, and Josh Evans – covered 400m in under 53 seconds.

Lorenzi featured strongly over 100m and 200m, clocking 11.18secs and 22.84secs respectively.

Amongst the Yate women, Yvette Westwood looked strong in the 100m, finishing in 12.48secs.

Daniel Brooks was the pick of the Yate younger athletes.

His 100m time of 11.31secs was impressive for an under-17 athlete.

This was the first time the sprints and hurdles meeting had featured wheelchair races.

Only two athletes took part. Both Jo Binman and Lewis Munday fought out all three distances – 400m, 100m and 200m.

They declared themselves very satisfied with their achievements and we that future years will see more wheelchair racers at Yate.

For the club, the aim of the day was to present the track under its new management in a good light.

This was clearly achieved with many athletes and supporters complimenting club officials.