Chris McAlister hosts event in memory of coach's late husband
For all the teeming rain at the David Weir Leisure Centre on July 5, there was a sense it would take a lot more than bad weather to dampen expectations at the inaugural Roger Armstrong Memorial Meeting.
The competition, organised by British 400m hurdler Chris McAlister in memory of his coach’s late husband, was played out in conditions which often bordered on appalling – but there was more than enough quality on the track to dispel the notion that good weather is needed for good atmosphere.
The soundtrack certainly helped. The range of Electro classics kept spectators energised, even if the 4.0 m/s winds made the lyrics of The Chemical Brothers’ ‘Galvanise’ slightly less intelligible.
The calibre of athletes helped too. The 400m hurdles pitted UK finalists Efe Okoro and Tyri Donovan against one another in the men’s race, whilst Jessie Knight took to the start-line in the women’s event, only a few hours after being named in the Team GB squad for the Paris Olympics.
Organising the competition was a new venture for McAlister, who turns 30 this year and took on arranging the event after Roger Armstrong – the late husband of McAlister’s coach Marina – sadly passed away in February.
McAlister’s endeavour to create the meeting has been remarkable, not least because he juggled the commitment alongside his Olympic ambitions.
The meeting not only reflected Mr Armstrong’s alacrity and light-heartedness but the quality of competition on show, plus the slickness of proceedings, were important successes too.
The men’s 400m hurdles featured the third and fourth placers from last weekend’s UK Championships final.
Donovan, who has already enjoyed a stellar 2024, ran an excellent 49.40 to beat off competition from Okoro, who himself has returned from an injury-hit 2023 in highly impressive fashion.
Knight also ran a season’s best of 55.47 to steal the show in the women’s race, finishing ahead of Hayley McLean.
There were equally races to allow developing club athletes an opportunity to test themselves.
Personal bests were recorded by Sutton and District’s U20 800m runner Samuel Kalembo, who ran 2:04.73, and U17 club-mate Abidanab Panchanlingam, who clocked 2:06.68. U15 athlete India Kaur, meanwhile, lowered her best to 2:23.29.
In spite of the rapidly deteriorating conditions, the athletes and officials – who were kept busy lugging hurdles around all evening – fought on.
In the men’s 110m hurdles, Will Ritchie-Moulin continued to justify his move from the 400m hurdles with another sub-14 second performance, crossing the line a comfortable winner in 13.93.
Tonbridge’s Elicia Lacey then ran 11.73 in the 80m hurdles as she continued her preparations for the English Schools’ Championships later this month.
The competition, which also saw World Athletics’ CEO Jon Ridgeon and UKA statistician Ian Hodge in the crowd, concluded with a showpiece 100m.
Not content with his win in the 110m hurdles, Ritchie-Moulin returned to take victory in a new personal best of 10.78, beating Joshua Weru and Tobias Hawkins who took joint-second in 10.80.
If the success of Friday’s event is anything to go by, this will not be the last time the Roger Armstrong Memorial Meeting features in athletes’ calendars.
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