NEWS ITEMS FROM 2021 (in date order):-

We send our congratulations (1) to Donna Fraser (Croydon Harriers) who was awarded an OBE for services to equality, inclusion and diversity in the workplace and (2) to Susan Deaves (Woking AC) who was awarded an MBE for services to athletics.

It is with sadness that we report the death on New Years Day of Peggy Burchell a Life Member of the County Association. Peggy was for many years the person who issued the competitors numbers to the male athletes at the County Track & Field Championships. She stopped doing this when she became unsteady on her feet and was concerned that she would be a liability. On being made a Patron of the County and subsequently a Life Member she was entitled to attend County Committee meetings. When she started to attend these meetings she achieved a rare distinction in that she was the third generation of her family to be a member of the Surrey committee - her father, W H Child, represented Mitcham AC in the 1920s; her son Keith has been a committe member since the 1970s and she joined in the 1990s.
Peggy gave tremendous service to Croydon Harriers and was their treasurer for many years and was a leading fundraiser for the project that saw the club build its own headquarters at Croydon Sports Arena

Herne Hill Harriers are saddened and shocked to advise that Idris Ojuriye, their popular and talented sprinter, sadly passed away suddenly on Monday 4th January. Idris was an valuable member of their BAL national league team for over fifteen years competing over 100m and 200m and sprint relays and was a regular competitor in indoor and outdoor championships ranging from Surrey to National champs. He represented Surrey on a number of occasions including competing at the Inter Counties championships and won medals at the Surrey outdoor and indoor championships. Idris was a popular, inspiring competitor and team member who was heavily involved in coaching in schools and local South London tracks where he inspired many youngsters to start athletics.

Link to tribute on HHH website

Idris's Surrey profile

Bill Nankeville died on 8th January 2021 aged 95. Bill, a member of Walton AC, was one of the leading middle-distance runners in Britain in the 10 years following the Second World War. He was 6th in the 1500m Final at the 1948 Olympics and was a semi-finalist four years later at Helsinki. In 1950 he set a British record when finishing 3rd in the 1500m Final at the European Championships in Brussels. From 1947 - 1953 he was a medallist every year in the Mile at the AAA Championships, finishing first on 4 occasions. After retiring from competition he maintained his links with Walton AC and regularly attended club functions until recently. Bill's Surrey profile

Photo by Mike Fleet

UKA is proposing that Men and Women should run the same distance in cross country races. A consultation is currently open. This should have gone to clubs, associations, officials and athletes with an interest in Cross Country running but the circulation seems to be patchy. This is an important question. It will affect the future structure of cross country leagues and championship races. If you are interested in cross country you should make your opinion count by responding to the survey. If UKA has not sent this to you personally you should be able to get a copy from another member of your club, maybe the club Secretary. If necessary the County Officials Secretary can forward it to you – contact enduranceofficials@surreyathletics.uk.
The consultation closes on 29 January so you should act quickly.

See message in the next column regarding the cancellation of fixtures scheduled for January through to April 2021. The provisional dates and venues for May onwards are shown in the County Diary.

In place of the Half Term Endurance Coaching Days, Surrey Schools & Surrey County are putting on an Online (Zoom) Coaching day on Saturday February 6th. The content will be mainly practical with some talks and interviews with both a current World Record Holder and International Athletes.
Many athletes who would have attended the February Endurance Day at Reeds will receive an invitation by E mail. Other athletes ( from Year 5 to 6th Form) may take part. Further information may be obtained from Jeff Manson

Gordon Biscoe died in Epsom Hospital on 12th February 2021 aged 88. Gordon had been a member of Belgrave Harriers for 68 years. In addition to being a staunch Belgravian he regularly attended Surrey Championships and volunteered as an official on many occasions.

Gordon's Surrey profile

Surrey Schools AA are holding a virtual cross-country event for Primary Schools from 15th February to 1st March. More ...

There have been some changes to the website. In particular some of the menu buttons at the top have moved. All the buttons relating to competition entries and results are now in the second row. Race Walking results are now split between those on the road and those held on the track with the former accessible from the "Road Walking" button and the latter accessible from the "Track & Field" button.

The results database has been enhanced - previously it was primarily track & field but now road and cross-country events have a similar focus. This has meant that the athlete profiles have been expanded and now include links to the events where performances were achieved. All-time rankings now include the Under-23 age group.

Significant changes have also been made to the structure of the historical "News Headlines" so that for recent years it provides an account for all the Surrey related activities for a year in chronological order. This information is complete for recent years and is being progressively updated for earlier years as far back as 1920 when the AAA started to regularise County athletics.

If you find any errors or omissions please contact Webmaster.