On Saturday 4th July, ߣÍÃÊÓƵ Preparatory School competed in the 45th English Schools’ Athletic Association National Cup Final at Melbourne Park in Chelmsford, Essex.
Our Year 7 and 8 Junior Boys’ team had already made history by qualifying for the National Final after winning the Midlands Final (5th in the country overall) with a record-breaking 489 points - the highest total ever achieved by a ߣÍÃÊÓƵ Prep team.
Despite being two athletes short due to the competition taking place during the summer holidays, the team rose magnificently to the challenge and competed against the very best schools in England.
Leading the way were three outstanding performers. Jai V was our highest individual points scorer with an exceptional 53 points, including a superb hurdles performance and becoming the only athlete at the competition to run under 12 seconds for the 100m while also excelling in the triple jump.
Hari V produced one of the performances of the day, clearing an incredible 1.70m in the high jump to score 27 points. The winner cleared 1.76m, breaking the previous Cup Final record, making this arguably the highest-quality junior boys’ high jump competition in National Cup history. Hari also ran an excellent 12.9 seconds in the 100m, bringing his total to 47 points.
Matching Hari’s tally was Ben T, who scored 47 points through a brilliant 300m performance of 38.4 seconds and a strong showing in the shot put. All three athletes achieved Platinum Standard performances.
Conrad H also delivered a tremendous contribution, scoring 38 points and surpassing the Gold Standard benchmark. He achieved personal bests in both the 800m (2:33) and the hammer throw, demonstrating great versatility and commitment for the team.
A special mention must go to Roman W, a Year 7 athlete competing against older pupils. Roman threw over 11 metres in the shot put to finish fourth and collected 34 points overall, an outstanding achievement for someone in the lower year group.
Ben R added 33 points through strong performances in the 800m and long jump.
Further valuable contributions came from Freddie H and Monty Y, who each scored 31 points across their events. Samyang L scored a valiant 30 points in the 200m and long jump.
The team’s relay squad was supported by Lucas Y, who scored 21 points in the 1500m, Rory T, who contributed 19 points, and Alfie W and Harry S-K, who added 14 and 16 points respectively in the javelin. Maddox H also played an important role, scoring 16 points for the team.
Due to competition rules, Connor A travelled as the reserve and was unable to compete, but gave great support for his teammates in what was an unbelievably selfless act stepping in at late notice.
When all the scores were combined, ߣÍÃÊÓƵ Prep finished 11th in the entire country. Considering that more than 500 schools entered the competition back in May, this is a truly remarkable achievement and places our athletes amongst the very best Prep schools in England.
The boys represented ߣÍÃÊÓƵ with outstanding determination, resilience and team spirit. To reach a National Final is an achievement in itself; to finish 11th in the country is something they should all be incredibly proud of.
We congratulate the entire team on a fantastic season and a memorable performance on the national stage.