FOURTEEN-YEAR-OLD throwing prodigy Jamie Stevenson’s season just gets better and better.
Crowned English Schools discus champion earlier this summer, the Haute Vallée student underlined his huge potential by taking the Amateur Athletics Association U15 discus title at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham on Saturday.
And he came agonisingly close to making it a double gold with success in the U15s shot, but a foot fault after he had thrown what would have been a championship-winning distance of well over 14m meant he had to settle for fifth place with 13.72m.
But yet another personal best in his favoured discus event gave him the coveted AAA’s crown against 15 other top-rated throwers - and the No 1 national ranking for his age group.
Not 15 until December, the towering youngster did not have a smooth ride on Saturday, having four no throws out of six in the discus and suffering a cut thumb before launching the 1.24 kilo implement 43.08m.
This beat his previous best by 37 cm and his nearest challenger by well over a metre.
‘I’m really pleased with that and I’m proud to represent Jersey,’ said Stevenson this morning on his return to the the Island.
‘It was all a bit of a rush, but I was throwing well in the warm-ups and getting close to 45 metres.
My shot putt was a disappointment, but I’m delighted with the discus title.’ Stevenson gets the chance for yet other national title when he competes in the Scottish nationals near Edinburgh later this month.
The Jersey Spartan member, formerly of Trinity School, was born in Devon, but came to the Island with his parents when he was just two, so will, says dad Rob, ‘proudly be wearing the club vest of Jersey Spartan,’ for the event.
Last week’s revelations about the new qualifications for Islanders regarding the Commonwealth Games have cast a shadow over the Stevensons’ understandable joy over Jamie’s achievements.
As things apparently stand only people born in the Island, or those with a parent born in the Island, will qualify for the Jersey team, although the CGA of Jersey are expected to apply for special exemptions in several cases.
In the long-term Stevenson is unlikely to miss out as Jersey’s loss would undoubtedly be another home nation’s gain - his father is Scottish and his mother Welsh - but in the short term his chances of competing in the Youth Commonwealths, for Jersey at least, would seem to be in the balance.
He is, however, looking forward to the chance of representing Jersey in the NatWest Island Games in Shetland next year.
Article posted on 16th August, 2004 - 12.00am
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