FREYA Potts was Bury’s only competitor at the prestigious English Schools Cross Country Championships held in Kent on Saturday.

Representing Greater Manchester in the senior girls’ race, Potts ran strongly to take 120th in the field, covering the 4k course in 16mins 31secs.

Bury’s youngsters were out in force at the Trafford medal meeting at Stretford where Oliver Cooper put together a great string of performances, winning the under-13 javelin (29.42), the high jump (1.31) and was second in the shot (7.44 PB).

Silver medals went to Blessing Idoko in the u15s 100m and 200m (12.82 PB and 26.76), Isabella Robinson in the u13s javelin (10.85), Lucy Dent in the u13 1200m (4:11.80 PB) and Lois Wormald in the u13 150m (21.35 PB). Henry Cooper took bronze in the u11 long jump (3.41), while other competitors included Ruby Dent, Lois Green, Harrison Burgess, Ava Thompson, Eve Mobey and Gabriella Idoko.

On Sunday, women’s team captain Hannah Lucas competed in the Ashby 20-mile road race in Leicestershire and ran brilliantly winning the event in 2:03:32 - a new course record.

Closer to home, Katie Geelan and Chris Whittaker ran in the Wilmslow half marathon. Geelan took a tumble after 100m but picked herself up to complete the course in 1:27:16 to take fourth place in her age category. Whittaker, in his first race for more than a year, ran strongly to cover the course in 1:22:20.

Bury hosted a spring throws competition at the Market Street track on Sunday with 80 competitors travelling from all over the country to take part in the shot, hammer, discus and javelin events.

Ten Bury athletes tested themselves against some strong opposition and the star of the show was Oliver Cooper who launched the javelin 33.69m for a convincing win that ranks him number one in the UK for his age group.

Riley Carson also won her age group javelin competition with an impressive 34.45m. Bury’s other winners were Sam Gooddy, also in the javelin with 30.99m, and Jemima Miles, with a winning putt of 7.81m in the u15 girls’ shot.

Some of Bury’s youngsters competed at the Sale Harriers ‘over the bales’ cross-country races on Sunday where gold medals went to Ethan Statham in the u9s’ race and Lucy Dent in the u11s. The girls’ u11s team of Dent, Erin and Amber Hudson and Ella Straffon-Finch took the team bronze medal.

Bury athletes were out at the parkrun at Heaton Park where young Sam Smyth ran strongly to take second place in 16:46 with Luke Harreld hot on his heels in 16:51.

Callum Gaunt took fourth in a new personal best of 16:58 with Matthew Garside in seventh in 17:31. Matthew Collister finished 10th, in a new PB of 17:47 and there were also new bests of 17:58 and 18:00 for Lewis Whittaker and Declan Tattersall respectively in 11th and 12th places.

Paul Johnston was a little off form having to settle for 13th in 18:05, while Jon Evans took 14th in 18.08.

Rachell Marshall was first woman, crossing the line in 18:58 and Peter Barrow was Bury’s next to finish in 19:13 for 22nd place. Nicola Ryan was second woman in 19:39, with Sarah Thomas making it a clean sweep in third in 19:55.

Her father Brian was just two seconds outside his PB in 20:03 for 38th.

The other Bury finishers included Rick Anderson (20:24 PB), Harriet Griffiths (20:29 PB), Dave Flood (24:12), Monty Sharma (24:33 PB), Patrick Yates (24:45), Afroditi Kalambouka (25:19 PB) and Roger Morley (25:28).