There were no fewer than 17 personal bests for Helsby High School pupils at the English Schools AA Track & Field Cup final.
The school’s junior boys team, having qualified as champions of Cheshire, finished seventh overall at Bedford’s International Athletics Arena.
At the half way stage, the Helsby boys were in fourth position, hot on the heels of the second and third-placed teams. But despite a remarkable nine out of 12 personal bests in the field events alone, they found themselves sixth at the start of the relay – and when they failed to get the baton round cleanly, they were disqualified from the race so ended up seventh.
Paul Park, head of PE at the school, said: “The whole team should be extremely proud of themselves, not only on reaching the national final but also on their performances in the final.
“To achieve 17 out of a possible 24 personal bests is a remarkable achievement and is testimony to the team’s hard work and dedication in training throughout the season. The team should be very happy with their seventh-place finish. They were also the highest placed team across all four competitions from the north of England.”
