SHROPSHIRE’S highest ranked international athlete, high jumper Bethan Partridge from Bridgnorth, has recently returned from two high-profile matches.
This season she has already won second place finishes at the Welsh Championships and England under-23’s Championships, and finished third at the Aviva European Trials and UK Championships.
Following these performances, Bethan was selected for two prestigious meetings last week.
The first was the Cork Grand Prix, where Bethan was jumping for the England senior team despite having turned 20 only weeks ago.
This competition was the first Bethan has been able to use her full run-up due to an ankle injury sustained last October. She equalled her season’s best of 1.75 metres and finished an incredible fifth place, the highest jump of any member of the England team. The competition was won by a USA athlete.
The second meeting was the Super8 City Competition, which sees seven teams representing the big cities in the UK (London has a north and South team) facing each other in all track and field disciplines.
There were many big names there, such as World Championship 100m women’s silver medallist Lauryn Williams, the world’s fastest female sprint hurdler Lolo Jones, and former 100m World Champion Kim Collins.
Bethan jumped off her full eight-stride run-up, and jumped well up until 1.76 metres, where she clipped the bar by the narrowest of margins.
“The experience of the competition on the whole was great, I really enjoyed it,” she said after the meeting. “Competing as part of the team was fun. My last couple of competitions I have taken as a positive – they are a stepping stone to the next part of my season.’
And the next part of the season is packed with important competitions for the youngster. This weekend is the England Senior Championships, and the next weekend is the Birmingham Games, a competition which brings the best athletes from around the UK including 100m champion Dwain Chambers and the young Will Sharman, who finished fourth in last year’s World Championship for the 110m hurdles.
Bethan hopes to improve on her season’s best in these competitions, perhaps jumping over 1.80 metres. Telford Athletic Club wishes her good luck for the rest of the season and beyond.
