YDL MATCH 1 – WHAT A STATEMENT FROM TEAM BRAT!
In our very first season competing in the Youth Development League, BRAT made an unbelievable statement by winning Match 1 with an incredible 579 points — finishing well clear at the top of the table! This was more than just a win. It showed the strength, depth, teamwork, and future of BRAT athletics. Across every age group, our athletes delivered outstanding performances on the track and in the field, with athletes stepping up in both scoring and non-scoring events to contribute valuable points for the club. Some standout performances included: Dominic Francis-Gordon dominating the U16 Boys sprints, winning both the 100m (11.50) and 200m (23.20). Adrian Demanya produced one of the top performances of the entire match, winning the U14 Boys Shot with 11.87m, alongside victories in Discus and Hammer. Charlie Keenan won the U14 Boys Javelin with a huge 30.02m throw. Darcy McDaid impressed across multiple events, winning the…
BSB League Kick-Off: A Historic Day of Junior Athletics at Alexander Stadium 🏟️✨
On Saturday, 2nd May, history was made as the brand-new U12 BSB (BRAT, Sutton, Birchfield) League officially launched at the iconic Alexander Stadium. This league was specifically established to address a vital gap in the local sporting calendar: providing high-quality, dedicated competition opportunities for Under-12 athletes. 🏃♂️🏃♀️ We set this league up with the clear purpose of ensuring our youngest members have a consistent platform to develop their skills in a professional, world-class environment. 🌟 For many of these young athletes, it was their first ever experience competing in a stadium of this caliber. The focus of the day was firmly on participation, team spirit, and mutual encouragement. Seeing the stadium filled with young energy, across every sprint, jump, and throw, was a fantastic sight. The atmosphere was electric, with a heavy emphasis on athletes from all three clubs supporting one another and celebrating every achievement, regardless of the club…
Golden Jubilee of Service: Gordon Ainsley Wins Prestigious Award for 50 Years in Athletics
This year, Gordon Ainsley celebrates an incredible milestone: 50 years of volunteering in athletics. And in fitting tribute to his half-century of dedication, this extraordinary individual has been recognized with the very award for which he was nominated, cementing his place as one of the sport’s most impactful volunteers. A Passion Turned Lifelong Vocation Gordon’s journey began in the 1960s as a competitive athlete, specializing in the 400m hurdles at Chelmsford AC. Following a back injury, he transitioned his passion into coaching after moving to Birmingham in 1970. This marked the start of a deep commitment that would see him become a significant figure through several club evolutions—from Warley AC to Borough of Sandwell AC, then Birmingham Rowheath AC, and finally to the formation of the Birmingham Running, Athletics & Triathlon (BRAT) club in 2010. Gordon was instrumental in each merger, ensuring the club always focused on serving both the…
BRAT End of Season Open – Sunday 7th Sept
This was the first open that BRAT have hosted in many years. It was great to see athletes attending from far and wide to attend an event in which the majority of events sold out. A host of new officials supplemented the experienced core team of officials. With the exception of Chief Starter, Ray Lloyd, all officials were from within the club. Additionally, a largely new events team worked together behind the scenes to make the event work. Full results can be found on Entry4Sport on this link and on PowerOf10 here. Photos courtesy of Imageineering can be found on these links: We hope to see you at our events in 2026.
Spotlight: BRAT Juniors
Our BRAT Juniors are having a fantastic season so far with eight athletes recently landing a clutch of national or world podium and top ten finishes. We currently have 250 junior athletes from eight to 18-years-old, with its junior team currently leading division one of the four-division Heart of England League. We are also actively supporting neurodiverse athletes and athletes with disability to reach their potential and welcomes anyone with a passion for track and field, cross country, road running, and triathlon. Recent BRAT junior successes include: At the heart of BRAT’s success is its dedicated coaching team of volunteers, who run training sessions from the University of Birmingham Athletics Track. Now, the club is seeking new coaches who are ideally ex or current athletes, but with passion for the sport being the most important criteria. Christopher Davy, BRAT chair, said: We’re passionate about being a welcoming and inclusive club…
BRAT Awards 2024
It was great to see over 200 of you at our sell-out awards night back in November at our new venue of Moseley Rugby Club. A big thanks to everyone involved in making this happen and a huge congratulations to all of the awards winners. With such a massive number of athletes competing at the moment, gaining a nomination is an achievement in itself! Regardless of if you won an award, you are all a part of the big BRAT family and we look forward to what 2025 has in store. The awards winners from 2024 and all previous years can be found here. It’s well worth a look at who has been awarded the various trophies throughout the history of the club, there are some big names on there. Thanks to Toby Gosnall who captured the night on his camera, you can view all the photos here.
We are the Champions!
The BRAT senior track and field team have been crowned champions of the MidlandsAthletics League for 2024, some 35 years since we last achieved that feat!After a very encouraging 2023 in which we finished second in the top flight, we weredetermined this season to go one better – but I don’t think anyone thought that we wouldwin all four matches. After the disappointment of the May meeting at Nottingham being cancelled, the firstoccasion that all division one clubs met was at Nuneaton for the ‘Technical’ Match in earlyJune. All the Midlands clubs from all six divisions meet up and compete over the 8 mosttechnically challenging events (pole vault, steeplechase, hammer etc..). You competeagainst all six divisions and only at the end are points awarded against clubs from yourindividual division. It if sounds complicated then that’s because it is! However, it’s great funand as a result of our efforts we picked…
Heart of England League – Banbury – 23rd June 2024
the Heart of England league. Rewind back to this time 2 years ago and we were in division 3. Since then, we have had 2 consecutive seasons of promotion. My expectation was that we would hold our own and finish comfortably around the middle of the division.
County Champs 2024
There was fierce competition last weekend at the Athletics County Championships (both Warwickshire and Worcestershire). The competition for the most sunburnt spectator was marginally less intense than the competition for the most vociferous! Yes, we were blessed with an uncharacteristically hot weekend which was tempered slightly by a cool swirling breeze. I’m not sure if it was just me, but it did seem as though there was a headwind on both the home straight and the back straight, but we really shouldn’t complain given how unseasonably warm it was! As junior team manager, I take great pleasure in seeing our athletes apply what they have learnt in training to competition. I know that all the coaches share this view. Training and competition are different. You can not replicate the adrenaline rush you feel in a race when someone creeps on to your shoulder or the euphoria you feel when you…
BRAT Warm-Up Meeting 17th March
Despite the looming threat of poor weather, the BRAT Club Track and Field Internal Season Warm-up Meeting unfolded as a great success. The dedication and spirit of the young athletes and everyone else who participated, demonstrated their passion and commitment for the sport regardless of the conditions. The enthusiasm of the BRAT club youngsters and Seniors lit up the University track, from the adrenaline-fuelled sprints to the energetic leaps in the long jump, high jump, javelin, discus and hammer throws, every moment was charged with passion, determination and resilience. None of this would have been possible without the selfless efforts of the small army who worked behind the scenes for many weeks to organise and ensure the smooth running of this event. Bea Pavlovic Note From the Field Referee:Thanks to all Officials and helpers who made this event happen despite the atrocious conditions on the infield. Special thanks to…
SENIOR T&F LEAGUE
Oh so close… After gaining promotion back to the top flight this time last year we knew that life in Division One of the Midlands Athletic League was going to be a challenge. And after the first match in Gloucester where we finished 5th out of 6 we were fully expecting a relegation battle. However thanks to somewhat of a comeback in the technical match in June – only 8 events such as steeplechase, hurdles, triple jump etc. the events which aren’t usually all that popular, we started to fill nearly every event and the points began to roll in. A second place finish in Nottingham in July, was followed by another second place in Rugby in August. Suddenly there was an outside chance of winning the title! It all came down to the final match of the season at Birmingham University on September 9th. We would have to win…
BRAT Juniors Secure Promotion as League Winners!
Let’s be honest, it’s not the most enjoyable drive to Corby. The dull grey clouds over the motorway did little to inspire enthusiasm. As we arrived in the stand, the weather felt more like that of an early April warm-up meeting as opposed to a league competition in the middle of summer! As Europe basks in a heat-wave where people are advised to not go out and to keep their curtains closed, summer in Corby felt more like a game-of-thrones ‘north of the wall’ escapade. A strong and persistent head wind on the home straight put pay to the majority of our sprinter’s chances of PBs. If you achieved a PB at the weekend, then you should be very pleased with yourself. The dark skies were occasionally pierced with downpours and the odd bit of sunshine, perhaps this is as good as it gets in Corby??? On that backdrop, seeing…