Twenty one Herts Phoenix athletes will be making the long trip by coach to Gateshead next week to compete for Hertfordshire at this year's English Schools Championships.  For some it will be their first experience of English Schhols and others in the Senior ranks have been several tmes before but all should enjoy one of the biggest athletics events of the year.  It will again be televised on Sky Sports 2 at 2pm on Saturday, and the following provides athletes pen pictures so that you know a little more about those you're hopefully watching on TV!

Jodie Williams U15G 100m
Queenswood School
Jodie is the top ranked U15 sprinter in the UK and has been unbeaten since she started running competitively. She was recognised by England Athletics with a special award for her achievements last season and is fast developing into a sprinter with real potential to succeed at all levels.

Recent career highlights:
2007    English Schools AA 100m, National AAA 100m and 200m Champion.
2008    National AAA and South of England AA  indoor champion        
            South of England AA 100m and 200m Champion.

This will be Jodie’s second year at the English School’s Championships where she will again run the 100m and anchor the 4x100m relay team which hopes to repeat its Bronze medal wining feats of last year.                                                       

Charlotte Cullen U17W 100m
Bishops Hatfield Girls School
This is Lottie’s first year running competitively and she has made a real impression winning county medals and gaining the respect of her team mates and rivals alike. Her times have improved steadily and her selection is well deserved.  

Recent career highlights:
2008    Hertfordshire AAA Indoor championships 60m Silver medal.
            Hertfordshire County AAA 100m Bronze and County Schools Silver medal

This will be Lottie’s debut appearance at the English Schools Championships where she will contest the 100m and is a member of the 4x100m relay squad.

Katie Caulfield U17W Long Jump
Monks Walk School
Katie is currently the 2nd ranked U17 Long Jumper in the UK and has been improving rapidly.  She is an all round talent and has represented the county at High Jump and 100m and could have been selected in any of three events this year.  

Recent career highlights:
2007    English Schools AA U15 Long Jump and 4x100m relay Bronze medals
2008    National AAA indoor Bronze medal and South of England AA indoor gold medallist.        
            South of England AA Long Jump Gold medallist.
            Hertfordshire County AAA and County Schools 100m Champion.

This will be Katie’s third year at the English School’s Championships where she will again run the 4x100m relay together with a number of club mates.                                      
 
Katie Grehan U17W Javelin
Freeman College, Buntingford.
Katie took up Javelin throwing last year having started out as a sprinter and Long Jumper.  She has trained hard to complete the transition effectively and is now ready to challenge for honours at the highest levels.  

Recent career highlights:
2007    Represented East of England at UK School Games
2008    County Schools Gold medallist with a new Championship Record
            Hertfordshire County Schools AAA Silver medal
            South of England AA Bronze medallist

This will be Katie’s debut at the English Schools Championships and she is looking forward to taking on the best throwers in the country together with club colleague Eloise Meakins.

Eloise Meakins U17W Javelin  
Queenswood School
Eloise has moved up an age group this year and made a seamless transition.  She has continued to develop and show what an exciting prospect she is.  She and Katie Grehan form a formidable team for the club and their friendly rivalry spurs them both on.

Recent Career highlights:
2007    South of England AA U15 Gold medallist
2008    South of England Silver medallist
            Hertfordshire County AAA Gold medallist and County Schools Silver

This will be Eloise’s debut at the English School’s Championships as last year, although selected, she was unable to attend.

Nina Edwards U17W 300m
Sheredes School
Nina is in the unusual position of living in Essex and attending a Hertfordshire School which means she competes in two counties.  However, in schools competitions Essex’s loss is Hertfordshire’s gain and she is again producing fine performances over both 300 and 400m as she gets back to full fitness.  Nina has been selected for both the 300m and 4x100m relay squad.

Recent career Highlights:
2007    Essex County AAA 300m Champion
2008    Essex County indoor 400m Champion and 300m outdoor Silver medal
            Hertfordshire Schools AA 300m Gold medallist

This will be Nina’s second year at the English Schools Championships where she will be hoping to improve on her semi-final performance of last year.
 
Andrew Walshe U15B 400m
Monks Walk School
Andrew switched to the 400m from the 800m over the winter and has shown that it was a worthwhile move.  Due to a lot of hard work and determination he has made great improvements and is currently ranked in the top 10 in the UK.

Recent career highlights:
2008    Hertfordshire County indoors and outdoors Gold medallist
            South of England AA indoor Silver medallist
            South of England Outdoors Silver medallist
            Hertfordshire Schools AA Gold medallist

This will be Andrew’s debut at the English Schools Championships and he will look to take his recent good form into the meeting and make a real impact at this level.

Laura Wake U20W 200m
Presdales School
Laura is one of the clubs well established and most successful athletes and has achieved a great deal of success in recent years. In 2007 she won a schools International vest, representing England at the home countries schools international in Wales, winning a Bronze medal. She was also a member of the county team which won the English School’s Combined Events Championships in Exeter along with club colleagues Stephanie Gaynor and Claire Humphries. Currently running well over 400m too, Laura has opted to contest the 200m this year.

Recent career highlights:
2007    English Schools U17w 200m Bronze medallist
            Schools International Bronze medallist
2008    Hertfordshire County indoor 400m Gold medal
            Hertfordshire County AAA 200mGold medal

Laura has attended these championships on a number of occasions and is now an experienced member of the team who, despite recent injury concerns, is hoping to do well in her first year as an under 20 athlete.
 
Claire Humphries U17W 80mHurdles
Sir Frederic Osborn School
Claire finished 2007 on a high note achieving a UK ranking of no.5 for the hurdles and as a member of the County team that won the English Schools Combined Events championships in Exeter along with club colleagues Stephanie Gaynor and Laura Wake.  She started 2008 by winning the South of England indoor title and hopes to acquit herself well at the forthcoming championships both in the hurdles and as a member of the 4x100m relay squad.  

Recent Career highlights:
2007    UK ranked 5th,  National AAA championships 4th
2008    South of England indoor 60mH Gold medallist
            Hertfordshire County indoor 60mH and 60m Gold medals
            Hertfordshire County AA 80mH Gold and 100m Silver medals
            Hertfordshire Schools 80mH and 200m Gold medals

This year will be Claire’s 3rd time at the English Schools Championships and she hopes to emulate her performance on debut in 2006 where she was a finalist.

Hannah Lloyd U17W 300mHurdles
Bishops Hatfield Girls School
Hannah moved up this winter from sprint hurdles, which she ran at last years English Schools Championships, to the 300m hurdles and by working hard has made a seamless transition and has found a friendly rivalry with training partner Rebecca Hore which has benefited them both.  Despite a recent thigh injury Hannah has come back well to achieve the standards required for selection for the team.

Recent career highlights:
2007    Hertfordshire County AA indoor 60mH Silver and Outdoor 75mH Gold
            South of England AA 75mH finalist
            English Schools Championships 4x100m Relay Bronze medal  
2008    Hertfordshire County AA indoor 60mH and 400m Silver medals
            Hertfordshire Schools AA 300mH Gold medallist

This will be Hannah’s 2nd time at the championships and she will also be a member of the 4x100m relay squad.
 
Danielle Currie U20W Triple Jump
Presdales School
Danielle started this season well and put in a number of excellent performances but unfortunately, on the eve of the South of England Championships suffered a minor foot injury which has necessitated treatment and rehabilitation.  Despite this she is returning to fitness and confident that she can repeat her excellent performance of last year at the championships where she finished comfortably within the top 10.  

Recent career highlights:
2007    Hertfordshire County AA indoor and outdoor Triple Jump Gold medals
            Hertfordshire Schools AA Gold medallist
2008    Hertfordshire County AA indoor and outdoor Triple Jump and long Jump Gold medals

Danielle is working hard in training now to ensure that her second English Schools Championships is as enjoyable and successful as her first.

Stephanie Gaynor U20W 100mHurdles
Stanborough School
Steph is becoming an experienced athlete and has achieved success at almost all levels.  In 2007 she became an English Schools International at both the hurdles and Combined Events.  She won medals consistently at all the major championships and has continued to do so in her first year as an U20 athlete including the National AAA Bronze just a fortnight ago.

Recent career highlights:
2007    UK school Games Gold medallist
            English schools AA, National AAA, South of England AA Silver medals
            Schools International Silver medal
2008    South of England AA Indoor and Outdoor Gold Medallist
            National AAA indoor and outdoor Bronze medals

This will be Steph’s 5th English Schools Championships and she hopes to repeat previous year’s medal winning success if she can.
 
Emily Stevens U20W 400mHurdles    
Presdales School
Emily finished last season on a real high winning a superb 300m Hurdles silver medal in the National AAA Championships at Sheffield.  This year she has moved up an age group and distance and has found the transition challenging.  Nevertheless she achieved the entry standards for the Championships early in the season showing that her training was paying off and was progressing well until a recent illness disrupted things.  Despite this she is now returning to fitness and is looking forward again to the Championships.

Recent Career Highlights.:
2007    Hertfordshire County AAA and County Schools Champion
            South of England AA Silver medallist
            National AAA Silver Medallist
2008    Hertfordshire County AAA Gold Medallist

Emily has been to the English Schools Championships on previous occasions and hopes to do well this year.

Richard Humphries U17M Hammer Throw
Sir Frederic Osborn School
Richard took up hammer throwing just over 12 months ago and has made rapid progress achieving a UK ranking of no.6 at the end of 2007 and finishing 5th in his first national AAA championships.  This year he has moved up an age group and hammer weight and has found that it has taken time to adjust.  Despite this he finished in 5th place at the recent South of England Championships has achieved his season’s goal of making the county team and is looking very much forward to the championships.

Recent career Highlights:
2007    Hertfordshire County AAA and Hertfordshire Schools Champion
            Eastern Counties AA Gold medallist
2008    Hertfordshire County AAA Champion

This will be Richard’s debut at the championships and he hopes to acquit himself well and to keep improving as the season goes on.

Peta Lundgren U20W Javelin
St Albans Girls School
Peta is now an experienced athlete and the highlight of last season was representing GB at the European Youth Olympics.  She has won medals at a number of national championships and is currently returning to her best form regularly throwing over 40m.

Recent Career highlights:
2007    GB International vest
            National AAA Silver medallist
2008    South of England AA Gold Medallist

Peta has attended the championships on previous occasions and has will be looking emulate her medal winning performances of previous years this time around.
 
Nathan Wake U17M 400m
Richard Hale School
Nathan is one of the clubs highest achievers in terms of podium successes.
In 2007 his first year as an U17 he won a number of gold medals at national championships, became an England Schools International alongside his sister Laura, set a number of National age group records and even drew glowing reviews from double Olympic champion Daley Thompson.  Nathan has had niggling injuries this winter which often occur when training at the level he is at but has returned to form to achieve the entry standard in his first race in winning the County Schools AA by a considerable margin.

Recent Career highlights:
2007    UK School Games, National AAA and Schools International Gold medals
            English Schools AA Silver medal
2008    Hertfordshire County Schools AA Gold medal

Nathan hopes to return to full fitness so that he can again win medals at these prestigious championships.

Rebecca Hore U17W 300mHurdles
Parmiters School
Rebecca trains alongside Hannah Lloyd and they have both improved hugely over the winter having moved up from the sprint hurdles.  This is her first year of serious competition and Rebecca has worked hard on her stamina and this is now paying off with good performances. She achieved the entry standards at the County AAA Championships in May in a very close race which ended in her and another athlete being awarded the same time.  

Recent Career highlights:
2008    Hertfordshire County AAA and Hertfordshire Schools AA Silver medals

This will be Rebecca’s debut at the English Schools Championships and she is looking forward to the whole experience.
 
Frances Slater U15G 100m
Presdales
This is Frances’ first year with the club and she has made an immediate impact.  She has run excellent times this year with the result that she was qualified to run either the 100 or 200m at the Championships.  She is unfortunate to come up against Jodie Williams often but has acquitted herself well and thoroughly deserves this opportunity.  

Recent Career highlights:
2008    Hertfordshire County Schools  AA 200m Silver and 100m Bronze medals

This will be Frances’ debut at the championships where she will also be a member of the 4x100m relay squad.
 
Sarah Miller U15G Discus
Monks Walk School
Sarah, a talented all round thrower, has come on leaps & bounds with the Discus this year. Her performances have steadily improved & the Discus has become her favourite & best event.  Sarah has trained extremely hard this last winter & as a result has achieved the entry standard with relative ease. She attended her first South of England AA Championships in May & gained top 10 finishes in both Shot & Discus.  

Recent career highlights:
2007    Hertfordshire County AAA Shot Put Gold medal
2009    Hertfordshire County AAA Shot Put and Discus Gold medals
            Hertfordshire County Schools AA Discuss Silver medal

This will be Sarah’s debut at the championships where she will be looking to improve on her recent excellent performances.

Deborah Willis U17W 300m
Presdales
Deborah has been one of the clubs most consistent athletes over the last few years and last year represented the East of England at the UK school games and was a finalist at the South of England Championships.  She is now running over both 300 and 400m and showing great potential at the longer distance. She is also showing an improvement in her recent outings at 300m and hopes to peak at the right time for these championships.

Recent career Highlights:
2007    Hertfordshire County AAA 200m Bronze medal
            Hertfordshire C0unty Schools AA 300m Bronze Medal
2008    Hertfordshire County indoor 400m Champion
            Hertfordshire County Schools AA Bronze medal

This will be Deborah’s second time at the English Schools Championships and she is looking forward to her opportunity to test herself against the best in the country.

Ian Tobin U20M Long Jump
Bishops Stortford High School
Ian is not only a successful Long Jumper but also a very good sprinter and regularly scores good points for the club over 100m and 200m.  He has had a difficult season so far this year and has not quite reached the distances that saw him perform so excellently last summer.  However, he is returning to form having jumped to within 3cm of his personal best this weekend and the opportunity to compete at this level is sure to bring out the best in him again.  

Recent career highlights:
2007    Hertfordshire County AAA 200m Gold medallist
2008    Hertfordshire County AAA indoor Long Jump Gold and 200m Silver medal
            Hertfordshire County AAA outdoor Long Jump Bronze medal

Ian will be hoping to emulate his performances of last year when he saved his best jumps for the biggest stage at these Championships.

 

Jon Humphries