Gold medal success at the England Athletics Championships for Charlotte Payne and Ben East

There was gold medal success for two Newbury athletes at the England Athletics National Championships.

Charlotte Payne secured an incredible double success, as she won gold in the senior and under-23 hammer throw.

Friday 19th saw an effort of 69.62m to take the senior title, a competition record, before a throw of 66.07 secured the junior crown a day later.

There was another local medalist, as Ben East took home gold in the under-23 javelin, with an excellent 70.41m effort.

East talked us through the build-up to the competition and reflected on his year.

“To be honest, until two days before the competition, I wasn’t actually sure if I was going to be there at all!”, said East.

“At the British Champs I strained my groin. We were figuring out whether it would be a good idea to go.

“But we ended up doing it. I threw on the first day and everything felt really good.

“It was sort of a reduced intensity approach to the throw, more of a focus on getting things technically right.”

Despite this change in mindset, East would find a winning throw when it mattered most.

“I managed to throw a couple of 70 plus throws, nothing crazy big, but I did it mostly pain free.

“And then I actually won! I was only entered in the under-23s, but I threw further than all the seniors!”

East is as ambitious as ever, but is thoughtful when it comes to setting fixed targets for the year ahead/

“I think setting expectations is important, but it’s important to do it in the right way”, he explained.

“The only distance that really matters this year is 76, because that’s the qualifying mark for the under-23 Euros next year.

“Setting goals of distance definitely has its place, but it can lead to you being very disappointed, even if you’ve done a lot of stuff right.

“I obviously haven’t thrown an 80m this year, but I’ve also fixed a lot of things in my technique and in my approach to competition.

“I’ve gained experience competing abroad, working with a variety of different coaches.

“I think I’ve improved in almost all areas, so next year I’m very hopeful that that can come together in the throw.”