PANVAC's 'Masters Blasters' blew the opposition away at the Embankment
The Peterborough & Nene Valley AC masters team blasted away all opposition during the 3rd meeting of the 2025 Eastern Masters Track & Field League held at the Embankment on Tuesday.
In a superb performance the seasoned squad of athletes out-ran, out-threw and out-jumped all their rivals.
Both the men's and ladies teams won by big margins, and with one fixture to go they are certain to be travelling to Thurrock for the finals in September.
In a five-team fixture, the PANVAC ladies won 15 of the 28 events, while the men won 13 to give the combined team a 50% winning record.
The highlight of the competition is always the relays which are staged at the end of the meeting. The over 35 men were just 0.6 of a second off the league record when winning the 4 x 100m race. The team of Russell Dowers, Michael Major, Sean Reidy & Dave Brown recorded a time of 49.4 to win the race by more than three seconds. The over 35 ladies didn't do badly either, crossing the line in 61.8 and finishing almost four seconds up on runners up Cambridge & Coleridge AC. The over 50 men also won their relay.
Seven of the ladies’ victories went to over 35s with Maggie Skinner first over the line in the mile with a time of 6:00.7. She also won the 2km walk.
Nicola Gibson clocked 68.8 for her 400m win and followed it up with first place in the high jump.
Andrea Jenkins won the hammer & the shot, throwing the hammer 42.82m. Claire Smith triumphed in the 100m with a time of 13.4. Kelly Sutton won the over 50 100m with a 14.4 clocking.
Judith Jagger took first place in the over 60 high jump, long jump and shot. Jagger also won the shot with a throw of 8.58m.
An over 70 category has been introduced this season and competing in this age group Brenda Church won both the long jump & shot. Church threw the shot 4.93m.
The walking race has A & B string competitors and Kay Gibson tasted success as the B team walker.
The over 50 men were dominant in the running and throwing events. Julian Smith won the 100m in a time of 12.7 while Andrew Stowe ran exactly one minute for his 400m win.
Brain Corleys clocked 5:06.8 for first place in the mile race & Simon Achurch came out on top in both the hammer and shot. Achurch threw the shot 12.00m, while Tim Needham won the over 70 event with a throw of 6.87m. John Spriggs was another successful over 70 winning the long jump with a distance of 3.45m. Max Hall jumped 5.61m to win the over 35 event.
Karl Eve won the over 60 high jump with 1.30m with Malcolm Tuff running 5:33.5 for his over 60 mile win.
Tim Clough was first over the line in the 2km walk with a time of 12:52.4.