male athletes in a field of their own
Driving forward: Sgt Lee Okoroafo (RLC) adds to his personal points tally in the 110 metres hurdles
MULTI-EVENTER
SGT Lee Okoroafo (RLC) had a busy day on both track and field. The all-rounder finished third in the pole vault and discus, was fourth in the 110 metres hurdles and was runner-up in the javelin with a throw of 48.37 metres
RETURNING HERO
LCPL Victor Mahachi (REME) celebrated a spectacular return to action after an absence of four years. The field athlete won the triple jump and long jump titles as the Army men triumphed over their Forces rivals
PERSONAL BEST
JAVELIN ace Pte Osman Muskwe (3 LSR) recorded a personal best throw of 54.18 metres to comfortably win his event at RAF Cosford. The soldier also excelled in the triple jump, finishing second to Mahachi
TRACK STAR
DISTANCE runner Cpl Danielle Hodkinson (AFC Harrogate) piled on the points for the women’s team. The endurance athlete took gold in the 800 metres after clocking a time of 2min 19sec and celebrated silver in the 1,500 metres
TAKE OFF
PTE Nichola Flaherty (RLC) clears the bar on her way to a winning leap of 1.63 metres in the high jump. The Army star shone in the field events, finishing second in the triple jump and third in the long jump
BOWING OUT
THE Inter-Services athletics championships saw a stalwart of Army track and field representing his team for the last time.
SSgt Mark Wiseman (AGC, pictured below) has won a host of titles during his career and signed off from Forces’ sport in fine style.
The Army strongman powered to victory in the discus with a throw of 50.23 metres, a performance that dominated the field and left his rivals trailing in the distance.
Wiseman claimed second place in the shot putt thanks to an effort of 15.44 metres and finished second in the hammer behind teammate Cpl John Osazuwa (3 LSR).
As well as being a key asset to the Service squad for almost two decades, the 41-year-old has shone at international level by winning a gold medal in the discus at the world masters championships. |
Report: Richard Long
Pictures: Graeme Main
POWERFUL displays from the Army’s track and field stars saw the men’s team cruise to a dominant victory in this year’s Inter-Services athletics championships.
The squad smashed their Forces rivals on their way to an imposing total of 159 points, an effort that saw them finish 33 points ahead of the Royal Air Force and 84 clear of the Royal Navy in third.
While the men celebrated a fine win, a depleted women’s team saw its stranglehold on the competition broken in what proved to be a challenging day at RAF Cosford.
The home side, inspired by the outstanding Cpl Laura McGawn, made up for the disappointment of losing by a single point last year to claim their first victory since 1996.
Cpl John Osazuwa (3 LSR) ensured the day started in fine style for the men as his throw of 59.02 metres easily secured the hammer title, with SSgt Mark Wiseman (AGC) completing an Army one-two.
Sgt Musa Audu (3 LSR) and Pte David Olusile (3 LSR) recorded another double for the Reds in the 400 metres while Capt Richard Smith (RADC) posted a time of 55.91 seconds as he secured gold in the 400 metres hurdles.
The sand pit proved to be another happy hunting ground as LCpl Victor Mahachi (REME) captured the long jump and triple jump titles, while the Army dominated the javelin courtesy of Pte Osman Muskwe (3 LSR) and Sgt Lee Okoroafo (RLC).
“It was a very pleasing result this year and we had so much depth to call on,” men’s field manager Maj Martin Annis (APTC) told SoldierSport.
“Our expectations were to win and we were very confident.
“We keep in close contact with the other team managers and we knew what we were up against.
“There is now great depth across all the events, which is great.
“We had some absentees due to operations but it was the same for the other Service teams.
“We got 90 per cent of the squad together, which included a few new faces on the track. We rely on the old and the bold who come back year-on-year but we will be trying to push some youngsters through at our warm weather training camps.”
Annis also found time to praise the efforts of veteran Wiseman, who won the discus and finished second in the shot putt and hammer in what was his last appearance at the Inter-Services.
“He was a bit disappointed not to take the shot putt title but he retained his discus crown and did very well in the hammer,” the officer said.
“He has been a great servant to Army athletics for 17 years and he will be sorely missed.”
With one star stepping away from the spotlight, Annis was pleased to see some younger athletes starting to fulfil their immense potential.
“Pte Muskwe did very well with personal bests in the javelin and triple jump,” he said.
“He has improved gradually throughout the year and he is still very young, but he has so much natural talent and ability.
“LCpl Mahachi was outstanding in winning the triple and long jump titles. He has been out of action for four years but came back to win in fine style, which was really encouraging.”
As the men made light work of their Forces opposition, the women struggled to match the dynamic displays of the RAF team.
Ladies’ captain McGawn took the 100 metres, 200 metres, 100 metres hurdles, long jump and triple jump titles and scored useful points in the shot putt, high jump and javelin during a superb personal performance.
Her efforts helped the RAF post a commanding total of 140 points.
The Army rarely threatend the hosts and finished on 118, with the Navy trailing once again on 63.
However, the Reds offered some brave resistance on the track.
Pte Cathy Chunda (3 LSR, pictured right) won the 1,500 metres and 5,000 metres and secured a bronze medal in the 800 metres.
Distance runner Cpl Danielle Hodkinson (AFC Harrogate) had double success by winning the 800 metres and finishing second to Chunda in the 1,500 metres.
In the field events there were also some notable performances.
Lt Lucy Rann (AGC) powered to victory in the shot putt with a throw of 11.60 metres.
She also finished second in the javelin and third in the discus to cap a fine day’s work.
The versatile Pte Nichola Flaherty (RLC) was another athlete to prove her worth in the field.
She won a close high jump competition thanks to a fine leap of 1.63 metres and went on to take second place in the triple jump and third in the long jump.
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