Four Walton athletes India Dryburgh, Sam Mace, Hetty Taylor and Sophie Mace represented the South East (Surrey Teams) at the 2014 Sportshall finals at Manchester on the 5th and 6th April. The weekend was split into 2 days with the u13 teams (Surrey represented by both the boys and girls u13 teams) on the Saturday and the u15 event (Surrey represented by the u15 girls) on the Sunday. Tait Jones u13 (winner of the shot putt at the Regional Finals) had also been selected but was unable to attend due to a school trip.
On the first day India for the u13 girls started with the shot putt and although nervous achieved a brilliant PB of 9.39m 4th just missing out on a medal against tough opposition. She followed this up with a creditable 8th position in the 2 lap race and a fantastic 4th in the 4×2 relay. The team spirit was buzzing throughout the day which continued when the Surrey team finished in 4th place.
Sam started the day with the shot putt with competitors of a very high standard. Nevertheless, he persevered and gained a massive PB of 14.35, nearly a metre past his previous mark. He finished the shot with a deserving silver medal being beaten by just 32cm. He then went on with other determined Surrey members, to compete in the 4×1 relay. They made the final and with some excellent handovers and the Surrey crowd cheering finished in an amazing bronze medal position. This success continued further, when Sam also competed in the 4×2 relay where the boys were outstanding winning the gold with a massive lead. The u13 boys finished a fantastic second overall.
On the second day Sophie and Hetty were competing in the Shot Putt first. Again there was strong competition and Hetty just missed out on the bronze medal by a mere 2cm, with a respectable distance of 10.49. Sophie won the competition for the 3rd year running with a throw of 12.35, beating second place by 80cm. Next, the girls ran the 2 lap race where Hetty finished in 15th position and Sophie in 23rd. In addition to this, the girls competed in the jumping disciplines where Sophie finished a tremendous 4th position jumping a height of 62cm, just 1cm away from a medal and Hetty finished a credible 19th place with a jump of 2.17 meters. Hetty and her relay team were terrific in the 4×2 relay winning the silver medal in style.