This season has seen success across all age groups, from junior to senior competitions.
We hosted the annual cross country partnership event at Church Farm with over 50 St Helen’s students competing and followed up with the English Schools Athletics Association cross country cup county and regional rounds.
We had an excellent season for the U13 and U15 teams in the English Schools Athletics Association cross country cup, with both teams progressing to the regionals this year. The inters won the regional competition hosted at Stoweand went on to compete in the national finals.
Here is Riona’s (Y10) report from the national finals:
Riona, Y10
"On March 1st, Mary (Y10), Annabel, Belle (Y9) and I competed at the
English Schools Cross Country Cup Final held at the Grammar School in Leeds. It was a really fun event and a good opportunity to represent the school at a national level. We drove up to Leeds on Friday afternoon and stayed overnight at a hotel close to the venue. We had a team dinner and breakfast at the hotel and headed to the event mid-morning on Saturday. We collected our numbers and warmed up together before our race. We competed in the intermediate girls category for Year 9 and 10, running 3k with over 120 people and 23 schools taking part. Individually, we placed 14th, 54th, 56th and 74th and our team placed 11th. I really enjoyed the weekend away and it was a great experience to race at a high level with the school and spend time with the other girls in the team."
Students participating in athletics this year have had multiple opportunities to compete in friendly meets against other schools and in national competitions. It was great to host a friendly event for local schools at Tilsley Park this year so that everyone could try as many events as they wished before official competitions began. Well done to the following who broke school records this year competing for HelKats:
Year 10 – Emily, triple jump 9.15m
Year 10 – Sienna, 80m hurdles 13.1 seconds
Year 10 – Riona, 1500m 4.44 sec
Year 10 – Imogen, 300m 45.6
Year 10 – Cici, 800m 2.25.5
Imy, Y10
"This year, our Inter Girls team competed in the ESSA Track and Field Cup, placing 1st in the county round with 451 points and later placing 2nd in the regional round with 432 points. This has been our strongest group of athletes yet, with multiple personal bests achieved across a wide range of events. A special shoutout to Riona (Y10) for her outstanding performance in the 1500m, scoring an impressive 32 points. As a team, we support and encourage each other no matter the outcome, which creates an amazing atmosphere to both train and compete in. Athletics has played a significant role this year in building everyone’s confidence and teamwork skills, resulting in a strong team dynamic. For us, athletics is something we all genuinely enjoy and see as an important and rewarding part of our school experience."
