Bromley athlete not content with new personal best
5:19pm Tuesday 10th July 2012 in Athletics
Shannon Hylton with her medal. SPORTSBEAT.
By Ryan Walters
SHANNON Hylton might have shattered her personal best not once but twice at the Aviva English schools’ track & field championships, but the Bromley sprinter insists she can go faster still.
The 15-year-old took to the Gateshead International Stadium track looking to continue her fine season having finished on the podium in all but one of her competitions this season.
And Hylton did exactly that in some style, the Blackheath & Bromley Harrier storming to inter 200m gold on Friday in a new personal best time of 23.95s, having originally set a new individual record in winning her heat 24 hours earlier.
But despite twice ripping up her own personal record book, Bullers Wood School pupil Hylton believes she is far from her peak just yet.
Hylton follows in some illustrious footsteps by claiming a medal at the English Schools with London 2012-bound Jess Ennis, Jack Green and Andy Turner having all started their careers at Aviva Athletics academy schemes.
She said: “My main aim was to get in the top two because last year I came third and I wanted to aim higher this year.
“I saw someone was leading on the bend coming into the stretch and I was thinking I need to keep minimum contact on the ground and that is what I did and I was really happy with my run.
“I got a PB in the heat and then I bettered it in the final.
“It gave me more confidence to go and run faster in the final.
“I want to get another PB before the end of the season and up my rankings. I came in as sort of an underdog which gave me more motivation to go and win.
“I need to work on my strength more in training and the hard work of endurance and starting on strength work helped me do well here and it should carry me through to the end of the season.”
Hylton was joined in the north east by fellow Blackheath & Bromley Harrier Yemisi Sofolarin who also climbed the podium, this time winning inter discus bronze.
But despite leaving with a medal around her neck, James Allen Girls’ School pupil Sofolarin couldn’t help but wonder what might have been.
“I didn’t throw my best and I didn’t get my PB so I am not that happy and I feel I could have done a lot better and last year I won the silver,” said 15-year-old Sofolarin.
“It’s great fun to be part of a team and one day I hope to be part of the Aviva GB & NI Team as a professional athlete.
“I am so excited that I’ll be watching my heroes this summer and I hope it will make a huge difference for our athletes to know that we will all be backing the team.”
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