Newyddion

25/01/2024 00:00, I Mewn Blog / Track & Field /

The 47^th edition of the 2024 Welsh Senior & U15 Indoor Championships will return to the National Indoor Athletics Centre in Cardiff this weekend.

The Welsh Indoor Championships has seen an increase in entries by 32%, the highest number of entries in the history of the event! Following the successful introduction at the 2023 Indoor Championships, the 2024 edition will continue to include fully integrated para-athletics Championship events.

Top entrants include reigning T20 Shot Put World Champion Sabrina Fortune (Deeside AAC), T38 World Para Silver Medallist Olivia Breen (City of Portsmouth), Welsh 400m Champion Hannah Brier (Swansea Harriers) and Commonwealth Youth Games T38 100m Champion Tomi Roberts-Jones (Newport Harriers).

Day 1 of the Championship will get kick off with the senior women's and men’s 1500m heats. Emily Lowery (Belgrave Harriers) will be looking to take the Welsh title, at the recent British Milers Event in Cardiff the Belgrave athlete finished seventh. Joining her is the new U17 Welsh Record holder over 1500m, Libby Hale (Swansea Harriers), who will be stepping up the age group.

Whilst the U15 girls 1500m will go to a straight final, National Development Programme athlete Bryony Boyce (Cardiff Athletics) will get her weekend of competition underway in the event, before running out in the 3000m on Sunday, an event in which she holds the national record.

Bryony Boyce breaks the U15 Girls 3000m Welsh Record at the 2023 Welsh Senior & U15 Indoor Championships © Welsh Athletics

Getting the field events underway on Saturday is the seated shot, featuring reigning indoor and outdoor champion Kieran Jones (DSW Para Academy).

Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games athlete, Lauren Evans (Cardiff Athletics) will be starting a busy weekend of competition on Day 1 in the 60m hurdles, before returning to compete in the long jump and high jump on Day 2. Evans recently retained her Welsh Pentathlon title with 4041 points, which saw her finish second overall in the British & English Combined Events Championships.

The senior men’s 60m hurdles, British Indoor Champion, and seventh-place finisher at the European Indoor Championships, David King (City of Plymouth AC) will be in action.

New all-comers record holder over 300m, Hannah Brier (Swansea Harriers) will be hoping to secure the Welsh 400m Indoor title to add to the one she picked up at the senior Track and Field Championships from last summer. The Swansea Harrier also holds the track record at NIAC for 300m.

Hannah Brier competing at the 2023 UK Athletics Indoor Championships © Owen Morgan

Also featuring on the first day of competition is the senior women’s shot put. After picking up the North Wales Regional Indoor title, Sabrina Fortune (Deeside AAC) will be looking to add another Welsh title to her collection ahead of a busy year of competition. Joining her in the open Championships is Tokyo 2020 athlete Lydia Church (Peterborough & Nene Valley). Church finished fourth in the 2023 World Para Championships in Paris.

Continuing with the field events on Day 1, the senior men’s pole vault will see Thomas Walley (Wrexham AAC) and Aharon Graham Mulvaney (Cardiff Athletics) compete. Both athletes recently competed at the Loughborough Indoor Open, which saw Mulvaney top Pool A with a new personal best height of 4.11m and Walley finishing second in Pool B with a clearance of 4.96m.

Thomas Walley competing at the 2023 UK Athletics Indoor Championships © Owen Morgan

Closing out the first day of competition will be the highly contested and competitive 60m races.

In the Para 60m races, Commonwealth Youth Games 100m Gold medallist Tomi Roberts-Jones (Newport Harriers) and long jump bronze medallist, William Bishop (Cardiff Met University) will be going head-to-head before both turning their attention to the long jump on Day 2 of competition. Roberts-Jones recently set a new personal best over 60m at the Junior Indoor Open 2.

Whilst in the senior women’s 60m defending champion Hannah Longden (Cardiff Athletics) will be looking to reclaim her title in preparation for the UK Indoor Championships next month. Longden will be joined by 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Olivia Breen (City of Portsmouth), and hot on their heels will be Nell Desir (Cardiff Archers), who is currently ranked number 1 in the U20 age category in Wales. Competing in the open Championships, Team Malta Olympian and Commonwealth Games athlete, Charlotte Wingfield (Cardiff Athletics) will also be amongst the favourites.

Turning our attention to the final race of the day, the senior men’s race will see number 1 ranked Welsh athlete and 2023 UK Indoor semi-finalist, Dewi Hammond (Cardiff Athletics) come up against up-and-coming U20 athlete Lewis Stephens (Cardiff Archers), who represented Team Wales over 100m at the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games.

Dewi Hammond competing at the 2023 UK Athletics Indoor Championships © Owen Morgan

The second day of competition will kick off with the 200m events. Issie Tustin (Cardiff Athletics) heads into the senior women’s race as the top-ranked athlete, whilst Ffion Roberts (Menai Track & Field) will be putting in a strong contest, stepping down from 400m to 200m, on day 2. Whilst North Wales athlete, Zach Price (Liverpool Harriers & AC) is top ranked in the senior men’s 200m.

Included in the schedule on Sunday is the 800m races, which will see Justin Davies (Bath AC) aim for his first Welsh title, whilst Emily Lowery (Belgrave Harriers) will be back in action in the women’s 800m. Whilst the U15 girls 800m will see returning champion Lois Codling (Newport Harriers) looking to defend her title. Codling broke the age group Welsh Record at the 2023 Indoor Championships.

After retaining the Welsh Pentathlon title, Lauren Evans (Cardiff Athletics) will be joined by 2023 Indoor Champion Rebecca Chapman (Cardiff Athletics) in the senior women’s long jump. Champman jumped a best distance of 6.01m to take the 2023 Welsh title. Also competing in the women’s long jump is T38 World Para silver medallist Olivia Breen (City of Portsmouth).

In the senior men’s long jump, U17 athlete Luca Phillips (Cardiff Archers) will be jumping up the age category. The Cardiff Archers athlete broke the U17 long jump Welsh Record last summer, with a distance of 7.15m at the SIAB Track & Field Championships.

To keep-up-to date with this weekend’s results here!