Hercules Wimbledon AC round-up: Chad Miller sets sights on European U23 championships after impressive return
BY TOM POLLAK
Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club’s former junior international sprinter Chad Miller is aiming for a place in Britain’s team for this summer’s European U23 championships in Norway, after more than a year out of the sport due to a hip injury.
The 20-year-old made an impressive return when he won his 100m race at an open meeting at Lee Valley Athletics Centre, north London, in 10.40 seconds – the fastest time by a UK U23 sprinter this summer. Although he was aided by a 1.5 miles an hour tailwind, this was within the two metres per second allowed for qualifying standard purposes. It was his first race since February last year.
Miller was well within the 10.85 entry standard needed for the England U23 championships to be staged in Bedford on June 19-20. It was also within the 10.50 qualifying standard for the European U23 championships in Bergen from July 8-11. The meeting at Bedford will be the British trials.
Even more encouraging was that he ran faster than he did the last time he turned out over 100m at the British Championships in Birmingham in August 2019 when, as a teenager, he clocked 10.78 to finish second in his heat.
His PB of 10.33 was achieved in winning his heat at the IAAF World Junior Championships in Finland in July 2018. Unfortunately, he got injured while finishing third in his semi-final and missed out on a possible medal. He was ranked second best UK U20 100m sprinter that year.
Miller also finished second in his 200m race at Lee Valley in 21.2. But this was with the aid of a 2.7 metres per second following wind which is above the limit for qualifying performance purposes.
However, it suggested he can achieve the 22.10 qualifying standard for Bedford and even the 21.30 needed to compete in that event at the European U23 championships.
Miller has a best 200m time of 21.01 set at an international meeting in Belgium in June 2018.
Nineteen of the club’s runners took part in the Friday Night under Lights 5km road race in Battersea Park with 13 posting lifetime best times.
Charlie Eastaugh shattered his previous best of 15:04, set at Milton Keynes last August, in clocking 14:28. He finished ninth of the 153 runners. Fred Slemeck almost posted a lifetime best of 14:42.
Joe Croft got under 15 minutes for the first time in clocking 14:58 to take 37th place. Tom Jervis posted a lifetime best of 14:59 in 39th place, a big improvement on his 15:19 set in 2017.
Other leading Hercules Wimbledon finishers were Matt Sharp, 43rd and top over-40 runner in 15:06, Ed Mallett 46th in 15:07, Rhys Boorman 52nd in a PB of 15:15 and Ross Murray 60th in a PB of 15:21.
