South West Schools Biathlon Success

On Sunday 19th November, 39 Monkton pupils competed at the South West Schools Biathlon at Millfield School. The event was a separate run and swim race, with times scoring points both individually and for a collective team of the 3 highest scoring athletes for Monkton. There were a total of 3 individual medals (2 gold, 1 silver) and 3 team medals (2 gold, 1 silver).

In Year 3, we had 3 individual competitors: Ariana, Liliana and Zach. All pupils completed their first Biathlon and did really well to overcome nerves and produce some great performances! Ariana placed 3rd in the swim and 10th in the run, finishing 6th overall, and Liliana placed 9th in the swim and 5th in the run, placing 4th overall. In the boys category, Zach placed 13th in the swim and 10th in the run and finished 11th overall. Well done to our Y3 first-timer Biathletes!

In Year 4, the girls produced some really impressive PB’s - especially their swims. Charlotte placed 3rd, Amelie 6th and Otille 36th with a new PB! The team were also well in the mix on the 400m run. Overall Charlotte finished 10th, Amelie 18th and Ottilie 36th, and the team came 4th in a competitive field.

The Year 4 boys had a great event and managed to podium not once, but twice which was very exciting for us all! Callum won individual silver after finishing second in both the run and swim. William also had a fantastic event, placing 6th in the swim and 5th on the run - finishing in 4th place. Jack also had an impressive swim finishing 15th, which added valuable points to the team tally. The team collectively won silver, well done to Callum, William, Jack (23) and Jack (31). 

In the Year 5 girls the team stepped up to the challenge. Hari produced an impressive performance, placing 10th in the Swim and 6th on the run - meaning she was the top finisher for the Y5 Monkton girls, in 6th place. Honor, Iona and Willow all produced excellent PB’s across both the swim and run. Willow finished 22nd in the swim, with a fantastic race. Well done girls! 

The year 5 boys had a fantastic day out as Jaden won both the Swim and Run and placed 1st overall with a very convincing win on the run especially. Max also had a super event and missed the podium only narrowly in 4th, Max placed 3rd on the run and 9th in the swim. Tom G and Reuben had a very close competition between them, Tom finishing 26th overall and Reuben 28th. All of the boys should be very proud of their performances which contributed to a very convincing win and team gold! 

The Year 6 girls also had some super racing from Beth, Rosabella and Cadence. Rosabella took the win overall after winning both the run and the swim in personal best times. Beth also had a fantastic swim and though she suffered injury on the run, did herself very proud in 18th overall. For Cadence, it was her very first Biathlon and we are really proud of her for achieving PB’d and stepping in for the Monkton Y6 girls team. The Y6 boys got stuck in and achieved some good results for the team, well done to Edmund (his debut Biathlon for Monkton ) , Freddie and Silas. Silas placed 18th on the swim and Freddie had a great run, finishing in 24th.  

In the Y7 category the girls put in some stellar performances in a competitive field. Immy, Katherine and Juno made a great team and pulled together on the day. All swims were in the top 30 and many were personal bests, however it was the run where this team shone, Immy finished 8th, Katherine in 9th and Juno in 23rd. Some really good race practice and experience for this team, including a very tight sprint finish between Katherine and Immy! Overall Katherine finished 11th, Immy 14th and Juno 26th. 

In the Y7 boys category Ethan, George, Mani and Michael formed a solid team. Ethan and Mani had excellent swims, finishing 5th and 8th respectively. George and Michael also swam PB’s in 16th and 23rd. On the run, our highest scorer was Michael who finished in 15th position and added valuable points to the team totals. They  finished in 4th place and it was a valiant effort by all! Final results were: Michael 17th, Mani 18th, Ethan 25th and George 29th. 

Last but not least, our Y8 girls put in some consistent results in a strong field of girls. Avie swam a fantastic 100m freestyle and placed 17th, followed closely by Merryn in 22nd. Over-all the run was tough for the girls but they did well over the windy 1600m distance and hung in there. Avie finished 17th and Merryn 24th, some great race experience.

The Y8 boys stepped up to the challenge, many out of their comfort zones. There were some impressive runs to start the day with Noah finishing 2nd overall, William in 9th and Charlie in 10th. After a great start, the boys moved onto the Swim and it was William who took the top Monkton spot, finishing 8th. Well done to all the boys who raced: Noah (8th), William (9th), Charlie (11th), Cameron (12th), Monty (13th). The boys top 3 finishers took gold overall, becoming the South West Biathlon Champions!