Release date: 29/07/2010
By: Eyvind Ryans
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or email eryans@wandsworth.gov.uk
Wandsworth success at Youth Games
Wandsworth’s boys Judo team has claimed gold at the 2010 Balfour Beatty London Youth Games.
The boys volleyball team also struck gold to cap a superb performance from the borough’s young sports stars.
Team Wandsworth amassed a total of 1,075 points to finish in seventh place overall – the highest place among the 13 inner London boroughs.
The team recorded a total of 27 top ten finishes, bringing home seven team medals.
The finals weekend took place at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre in the thirty-third running of the London-wide competition.
The event is Europe’s largest youth sports event and brought together all of the capital's 33 boroughs competing across 28 different sports.
Wandsworth’s other impressive performers included the boys and girls table tennis teams who both narrowly missed out in the final to finish runners up after a gruelling days’ play. Their silver medals sat proudly alongside those collected by the rowing team at the regatta at the beginning of the month.
The female artistic gymnastics team from Mayfield Gymnastics Club and the hockey teams from Spencer Hockey Club both collected bronze.
As well as tasting team success, the borough also picked up a hat-full of individual medals. Georgina Russell won the first race of the day in the pool in the 50m backstroke and her success was followed by Ross Dibblin in the 50m breaststroke.
Ellie Stewart was crowned shot put champion whilst Timothy Livingstone won the 800m before sprinting across to win his indoor rowing event.
Shortly after the Games Tim cemented his reputation as one of the country’s most promising young athletes by breaking his own British junior rowing machine record at the council’s Barn Elms Sports Centre. He beat his previous distance of 1,248metres in a time of 4 minute by a single metre.
A total of 44 Wandsworth teams were involved in this year’s events which started back in February with the indoor cricket.
The borough entered a further 9 teams in the London-wide Mini Games for children of primary school age. Here, the mixed tag rugby team collected a superb silver medal whilst the successful Sportshall Athletics team were bronze medallists.
More than 450 young people represented Wandsworth at the Youth Games and Mini Games.
Wandsworth Council’s spokesman for sport Cllr Sarah McDermott said:
"The standard of competition gets higher and higher every year and our team has produced yet another incredible set of results. Congratulations to every one of our athletes, many of whom have very promising sporting careers ahead of them.
"These gifted young people are helped on their way by the borough’s coaches, team managers and parents - as well as the council’s excellent sports development team. Their dedication and support has played a central role in maintaining Wandsworth’s consistently high standards in this competition."
For more information about Barn Elms Sports Centre and other council sports facilities visit www.wandsworth.gov.uk/sport
From more information of the Youth Games visit www.wandsworth.gov.uk/youthgames
Top picture: Timothy Livingstone with his coaches Steven O’Connor from Barn Elms Sports Centre and Carol Cornell from Tiffin School.
Bottom picture: The Wandsworth boys Judo team celebrate their win.
Ends
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