Eight Pentathlon GB youngsters will travel to Bulgaria for this year’s Under 17 European Championships which begin at the end of June. The octet consists of the top four girls and top four boys on the 2017 Pentathlon GB Under 17 Ranking List which was created following this year’s two Under 17 Ranking Competitions.
Three of the team – Lancashire’s Emma Whitaker, Somerset’s George Case and Kent’s Tom Wilton – will be making their second appearances at the Under 17 European Championships having competed on home soil in 2016.
16-year-old Whitaker, who enjoyed victory at the Portuguese Under 17 National Championships in April, will be joined in the girls’ team by Warwick’s Georgina Mitchell, Hertfordshire’s Kamie Lowe and Plymouth’s Annabel Denton. Fellow 16-year-old Mitchell has enjoyed an outstanding 12 months, beginning with victory at the 2016 Under 17 British Modern Tetrathlon Championships before finishing an impressive 4th on her international debut at Olympic Hopes in Prague last October. Mitchell, who trains at Plymouth College, has also produced a strong beginning to 2017 domestically and has finished 1st and 2nd at the two Under 17 Ranking Events.
Lowe, who currently studies and trains at Saint Felix School, is another athlete who has made a promising start to 2017, including an international debut at the GB Youth International in March. The 16-year-old then claimed a bronze medal on her first overseas event at the Portuguese Under 17 Championships in April as part of a Pentathlon GB team that contained the same 4 girls that have been selected for the European Championships.
Plymouth College’s Denton, the youngest member of the squad, has earned her place in the team with blistering performances at both Under 17 Ranking Competitions which sees her sit 4th on the GB Under 17 Ranking List. Denton, who will turn 14 just a few days before the Championships, also impressed in Portugal where she claimed silver as part of a GB 1-2-3-4.
In the boys’ team, Wilton and Case, who finished 18th and 21st respectively at the 2016 Under 17 European Championships will be joined by Yorkshire Pentathlon Club duo Toby Price and Josh Hood. The four boys have also enjoyed good starts to 2017 with 16-year-old Price claiming victory at the first Under 17 ranking competition of the year at Hartpury College.
It was Ashford School Modern Pentathlon Club’s Wilton who took the honours at the second ranking competition of the year, backing up his victory at the Under 17 Portuguese National Championships earlier in April. Leweston Pentathlon Academy’s Case has already enjoyed international success in 2017 with a stunning silver medal at the GB Youth International in March whilst 16-year-old Hood has enjoyed a consistent beginning to the season that has seen him compete at internationals in the UK, Portugal and Spain already this year.
The Championships in Pazardzhik, Bulgaria will follow the modern triathlon format which sees all athletes complete a 200m swim before the laser run (combined running and shooting).
Full Girls’ Team
- Georgina Mitchell, 16, from Warwick. Currently training at Plymouth College.
- Emma Whitaker, 16, from Bolton Le Sands, Lancashire. Currently Training at City of Lancaster Triathlon Club (COLT).
- Kamie Lowe, 16, from Bassingbourn, Hertfordshire. Currently training at Saint Felix School.
- Annabel Denton, 13, from Plymouth. Currently training at Plymouth College.
Full Boys’ Team:
- Toby Price, 16, from Alne, North Yorkshire. Currently training at Yorkshire Pentathlon Club.
- George Case, 15, from Bridgehampton, Somerset. Currently training at Leweston Pentathlon Academy.
- Tom Wilton, 16, from Bethersden, Kent. Currently training at Ashford School Pentathlon Club.
- Joshua Hood, 15, from Hull, East Yorkshire. Currently training at Yorkshire Pentathlon Club.
Full competition schedule:
- Friday 30th June – Girls’ Individual & Boys’ Individual Competitions
- Sunday 2nd July – Girls’, Boys’ and Mixed Relays
Report courtesy of Pentathlon GB
