Double Paralympian Kamlish teamed up with Zac Shaw, Sophie Hahn and Nathan Maguire to claim a superb second spot behind Russia in a thrilling Universal 4x100m mixed relay final in 48.20.

2021.06.04 World Para Athletics European Championships Bydgoszcz 2021
photo by Bartlomiej Zborowsk

Kamlish, who trains at the Team Bath Sports Training Village and is coached by Rob Ellchuk, also ran a season’s best time of 13.17 as she finished fifth in the T64 100m final.

 A personal best with her last attempt of the competition earned Maton a brilliant T47 long jump bronze medal. Maton, who is coached by Colin Baross, was fourth going into the final round of jumps but delivered under pressure as a 5.28m clearance moved her onto the podium by 1cm and matched her third-placed finish at the 2018 European Championships in Berlin.

“I’m thrilled!” said Maton, who has had injury problems since winning silver at the London 2017 World Championships but is getting back to her best form. “I loved competing again, it was an entertaining competition which is exciting for me and everyone watching.

“I seem to make a habit of leaving it to my last jump. It did that at the Worlds in 2017 too, I was in fourth and had to jump big to get in the medals. I obviously like doing it that way, I enjoy the pressure of competitions.”

Maton, from Devizes, also reached the T47 100m final in Poland, her time of 13.17 being her quickest since 2017.

Visit www.teambath.com/athletics to find out more about athletics at the University of Bath.

Courtesy of the Team Bath Press Office at Matchtight Ltd.

The 20-year-old, who has been coached by Rob Ellchuk at the Sports Training Village since 2011, finally got the international title she has been striving for after two stunning performances in the T44 100m at the World Para-Athletics Championships.

Kamlish smashed her own world record when she clocked 12.90 in the heats and then held her nerve in a final delayed by a false start to scorch to victory in 12.92, much to the delight of the home crowd in the London Olympic Stadium.

It was Kamlish’s first global medal since her 200m bronze at the 2013 World Championships and made amends for her frustration at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, where she also broke the world record in the heats but finished fourth in the final.

“Champion of the world sounds amazing, I can’t imagine anything better!” said Kamlish, a lower-leg amputee who first got into athletics after attending a Playground to Podium event at the University of Bath in 2011 to identify potential Paralympians.

“The only other major international medal I’ve got is a bronze from 2013, so it has been quite a long time coming and I’m really, really happy.

“I was actually kind of glad there was a false start because my first start was so bad! The girls either side of me in the final are really good starters but over the past year since Rio, I have learnt to stay relaxed and think they’re ahead of me but it’s OK, I can overtake them.

“I couldn’t really ignore the parallels [between Rio and London]. It was nice to break the world record but it also gave me a few extra nerves because it was so similar to Rio.

“I knew exactly what went wrong in Rio, though, and I just had to rectify that. I’m really relieved and I’ve proven to myself I can do it. I’m so pleased, I can’t quite believe it.”

Kamlish was also full of praise for her coach, saying: “Rob has been my only coach since I started the sport and he’s been immensely supportive. I don’t think I would have been able to do any of this without him.”

Training partner Paul Blake was disappointed with his eighth place in the T36 200m final but he will be back on Friday in the 400m – the distance in which he won gold at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. That final is at 8.03pm.

Polly Maton, coached by Colin Baross at the University, runs in the T47 100m final at 8.55pm on Tuesday.

To find out more about the athletics programme at the University of Bath, visit www.teambath.com/athletics.

Report courtesy of Team Bath Press Office at Matchtight Ltd.

Richard Whitehead (Photo: Loughborough University)

Richard Whitehead, one of the stars of Paralympic sport, treated himself to an early birthday present by taking another T42 200m world title. 41 in just five days’ time, the world record holder blew away his opposition before producing his trademark ‘guns’ salute.

After winning in 23.26, Whitehead commented: “As a British athlete you do feel pressured.  But with pressure comes a performance like that and as you come off the bend it just reignites those moments from 2012, and when I came off that bend all of a sudden that whirlwind effect is pulling you to the finish line. That was a special moment.

“If you are British athlete and you are able to do it in your home stadium it’s something special”.

Despite his status, Whitehead named Sophie Hahn (pictured second from right in lead photo) as the performance of the day, the 20 year old tearing round the bend to win her first major 200m title, smashing the world record in the process.

Hahn, already Paralympic and two-time world champion over the shorter 100m, upgraded the silver medals she won in the longer event at the last two World Championships with a simply sublime run. Running blind in lane nine, the Loughborough based sprinter flew round the bend and held her form superbly in the closing stages to stop the clock at 26.11.

Naturally delighted, Hahn said: “It feels phenomenal.  I never imagined I’d get the world record. It doesn’t matter about times as long as I got the gold. I’ve been running very well this year and have a great team behind me. It feels fantastic. I am so happy. The noise was phenomenal out on the track.”

Another athlete to win gold with a new world record performance was two time Paralympic and now three time world champion Hollie Arnold. Producing a remarkably consistent series, Arnold took the F46 javelin title, delivering that 43.02m effort in round four to break her old record by 1cm.

Coached by Loughborough Sport’s David Parker, Arnold spends half of her week training at the Paula Radcliffe Stadium, and that move over the last twelve months has been rewarded with a new  world record.

“That was a fantastic series for me. I went out there to smash it and I did. It was great to get the world record. I knew that fourth throw was close but I wasn’t sure if I’d got it. The support of the crowd was absolutely amazing. I’m really delighted.”

Stef Reid finally got her golden moment, after finishing runner-up at so many global championships over the last five years. Twice Paralympic silver medallist, Reid wasn’t about to let this opportunity go to waste, as she took an early lead in round one of the T44 long jump.

Thriving off an adoring home crowd, Reid led throughout, improving to 5.40m in round three which ramped up the volume even more. This proved to be the winning jump for the T44 single leg amputee, ensuring she was finally able to step up onto the top step of the podium.

A delighted Stef Reid commented: “I felt nervous coming in this morning but once I came out, I thought:  ‘I am at home’. I didn’t want to be the silver girl for ever. Of course, you have voices in your head, but you have got to be tough.  I have been doing this for 11 years now. It has taken a long time to get there so it is so satisfying to win this gold medal. A lot of athletes never get to do this so I am ever so grateful that I get the chance to do this. It feels amazing. It has been a long journey.

“In Rio I was competing and then working for Channel 4. This time I was also a board member for the organisation. This is a really special championship to win gold at, as I have seen it from all sides.”

Also in action in the morning session was Zac Shaw, and he finished fourth in his T12 100m semi-final, unfortunately not enough to advance to the final. He’ll back in action in the 200m on Wednesday.

Report courtesy of Loughborough University

T36 runner Blake, coached by Rob Ellchuk at the Sports Training Village, ran his fastest 200m time since 2012 as he clocked 25.73 on the newly-laid track in Dubai to claim his first victory of the week in Monday’s T35/36/42 final.

He was back in action the following day in the 400m, the distance he won gold in at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. He produced another strong showing to take silver in the T36/37 final behind Algeria’s Sofiane Hamdi in 56.19.

A busy week concluded on Wednesday as Blake won gold in the T35/36/42 100m final, clocking 12.56 to finish ahead of fellow Brit Jordan Howe.

Blake’s main target for the season ahead is the IPC World ParaAthletics Championships, taking place at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Stadium in London from July 14-23, where he will be defending his T36 800m title.

Report courtesy of University of Bath Press Office via Matchtight Ltd