R&N Athletic Club duo Kevin and Debbie Murch win Pentathlon gold in Birmingham
Kevin and Debbie Murch led the way for Rugby & Northampton Athletic Club at the British Masters Decathlon/ Heptathlon Championship in Birmingham, earning gold medals in their respective pentathlon events.
Kevin earned himself a personal-best points tally in the M55 competition, racking up 3541 points for his efforts. A season-best javelin throw was the key to victory – his distance of 55.10m was over 30m more than the next best effort. John Moreland made sure of an R&N one-two, grabbing the silver medal with a score of 3483, just 54 points behind. Moreland recorded wins in four of the five events, setting a season’s best in the shot putt (11.50m) and the javelin (24.13m), but it wasn’t enough to grab the gold from his club-mate.
Debbie was not to be outdone by her husband, finishing the W55 pentathlon contest with 3339 points – also a PB score – on the way to first place. She finished first in all five of her events, setting a PB in the weight-throw (10.70m), with the overall margin of victory ending up at over 600 points.
The pentathlon continued to be dominated by R&N as Dave Burrell, who also runs for Luton, came out on top in the M50 contest. A sensational showing saw Burrell break four of his PB’s en route to taking gold. He beat his previous efforts in the shot putt (12.73m), weight-throw (18.59), discus (43.57m) and the javelin (43.44m). As a result, his performances earned him an overall PB of 3981 points, over 500 ahead of his nearest rival.
There was further glory for R&N in the W60 Heptathlon, with Sally Hine bringing home the gold medal with a PB of 4054 points. Hine earned a PB in the javelin, throwing 11.10m, along with season’s bests’ in the 200m (33.64 seconds), 800m (3:30.70) and the 80m hurdles (15.73).
Frank Blackwell was also in the medals, bringing home the bronze in the M60 decathlon with a PB of 4997 points. Blackwell set four PB’s on the way to third place, running the 100m Hurdles in 19.26 seconds, and the 1500m in 6:44.52. Blackwell also smashed his records in the shot putt (8.30m) and discus (28.26m).
With records tumbling throughout the event, Terry Egan wasn’t to be left out. Egan finished fifth in the M50 10,000m, setting a season’s best time of 41:08.02, rounding off an impressive weekend of competition for Rugby and Northampton AC.
