Paving the way for what could well be the third Varsity win this academic year, Cambridge University Athletic Club (CUAC) put in some excellent performances at the Cambridgeshire County Championships.

Held at Wilberforce on Saturday 14th May, conditions were less than ideal with strong winds forcing the competitors to work that little bit harder. But in spite of the weather, CUAC secured plenty of medals and a string of personal and season’s bests.

The event was well-attended and attracted athletes from across the county, which ensured some strong competition. Spectators filled the grounds with a buzzing atmosphere, which can hopefully be matched next weekend at the Varsity clash.

On the track, the 400m hurdles kicked off the day, whilst Hammer and Triple Jump started on the field. Andy Lomas ran a good race in the men’s 400H followed by Nyma Sharifi who later ran in the 400m behind Christian Roberts and Rory Graham-Watson, with Ali Davies completing the CUAC entry.

The men’s team had a particularly successful morning on the field, taking home all the medals in both the Triple Jump and Pole Vault competitions. Tom Wagner vaulted 3.80m to win the Gold, with Sam Hyatt-Twynam taking Silver with a vault of 3.50m and Alex Bates taking the Bronze with 3.30m.

The women’s Triple Jump was equally successful with Meg Tyler jumping a fantastic PB of 11.22m and Ellie Flanagan also scoring a new PB of 9.67m. The Tyler-Flanagan duo also did well in the High Jump clearing 1.50m and 1.35m respectively.

Medals were also won in the throwing events: Ryan Harper took Bronze in the Discus with a throw of 38.78m; David Szabo took Silver in the Javelin with 49.34m; and Toby Hassler took Silver in the Shot Put with 13.55m.

Helen Broadbridge and CUAC president Laura Duke dominated the women’s throws with medals in the Hammer, Javelin, Discus and Shot.

Back on the track, Lizzie Thompson took Gold in the women’s 400m Hurdles and Jo Lister took Silver in the 400m. Emily Craven narrowly missed the Bronze and was followed by Patricia Lewis and Grace Copplestone.

CUAC women’s captain Emma Perkins ran an impressive PB of 14.77 secs winning the 100m Hurdles. Men’s captain Mark Dyble ran a PB of 10.83 in the 100m final.

Middle-distance athletes also had a successful day, with Chris Bannon running a sub-4-minute PB in the 1500m to take first place and Declan Murray winning the 800m for the men.

Noelia Ferruz and Nora Rossberg took Silver and Bronze respectively in the womens 800m. Jane Thomas took Bronze in the 1500m.

Strong performances from other CUAC athletes included Leo Scott, Scott Humbarger, Tim Champion-Smith, Miles Horn, Ed Moyse, Neil Houlsby, Tom Elton, Natalie Arrowsmith, Helena Wace and Suzanne Tobin ensured the club dominated the competition.

With just a week to go before the 137th Varsity Match, CUAC are fit and ready to take on the Other Place.

The match will be held at Wilberforce Road on Saturday 21st May. All Light Blue supporters are encouraged to come down and enjoy a day of top quality athletics: CUAC have put in the work and, as this weekend has shown, deserve nothing less than another epic victory.