Highlights from Day 1 of the 2014 World Masters Indoor Championships in Budapest
Written by Bridget Cushen on 26/03/2014
The 302-strong British Masters team has made a very successful start at the 6th World Masters Athletics Biennial Indoor Championships in Budapest (25-30 March), where over 3800 competitors from all part of the Globe have entered. On Day 1 World W50 Heptathlon silver medallist, Gayle Clark, won the Pentathlon with 3465pts. John Mayor got a bronze medal in the Men’s 55-59 age category and Greg Dunson just missed out in 4th in the M50 group.
In City Park where the 8km cross-country races were held, John Shapland had a clear victory in the M60 race leading David Oxland and Stewart Thorp to a team gold. Peter Molloy finished 2nd in the M65 group and ably supported by Mike Mann and Peter Hamilton, they went on to win the team award. Individually, the women were more successful with Angela Copson retaining her W65 World title, Scotland’s brilliant Fiona Matheson was unchallenged in the W50 group. It was individual silver medals for Scotland’s other star, Susan Ridley, South Londoner Roz Tabor and Ann Martin. Team gold medals in the W45-49 group (Ridley, Saku Halkala, Susie Tawney), W50 (Matheson, Caroline Wood, Jane Pidgeon) and in the W60 team (Tabor, Copson, Sue James).
M70 field home. Arthur Thomson was an emphatic M75 winner and Abingdon AC’s Noel Blatchford took the W65 World crown. Our two octogenarians, Eric Horwill and 86-year old James Farrar, just missed the rostrum finishing 4th in their M80 and M85 category