On Monday 16th January, a team of enthusiastic Year 7 and 8 athletes travelled to the impressive facilities at NSG for the Northampton Sports Hall Competition.
Teams representing NSG, Malcolm Arnold, Abbeyfield, Thomas Becket, Duston, St Peters and Weston Favell provided a challenging test for our talented team. Pupils competed in various events, including an obstacle relay; 4 x 200m relay; 2, 4 and 6 lap individual races; speed bounce; shot put; vertical jump; standing long jump; standing triple jump and the 8 lap paarlauf (a relay that is run in pairs, where runners do not have to run the same distance as their partner, but every athlete must complete at least 1 lap).
The event started with the obstacle relay, where the Year 8 boys team (Alfie North, Ross MacNaught, Cohen Curtis and George Thompson) made a strong start finishing 2nd. This was followed by the 2 lap and 4 lap individual races, which both had strong showings from the Academy participants. Marie Massala stormed home to win her heat in the 2 lap race, whilst Cohen Curtis won his heat in the 4 lap race.
The next track events were the 6 lap individual race and the 8 lap paarlauf. These were very competitive and tested students’ stamina.
The final track event of the competition was the 4 x 200m relay. This was a disappointing event for the Academy, who saw two out of four teams disqualified. To add to the frustration, the Year 8 Girls’ team were leading before being dismissed from the race, as a result of running an incorrect number of laps! (They somehow managed to run too many!)
Whilst these track events were taking place, multiple field events were being held. There were some good performances in these events from the Academy’s teams, including the Year 8 Girls Shot Put (Dammy Adenji) and the Year 7 Boys Vertical Jump.
All in all the Sports Hall event was a great experience for our students, who all represented our school with pride. We also registered some excellent results, with 2nd place finishes for the Year 7 boys and Year 8 girls, who will now be competing in the County Championships. There was also a 4th place finish for the Year 8 boys.
If you think that you’re a budding athlete, Athletics Club will start running after Easter.
So come along to the back sports field and test your skills!
George Thompson, Year 8
16/01/17