English Schools' Athletics Championships

The English Schools' Athletics Championships are annual national athletics competitions organised by the English Schools' Athletic Association (ESAA) for students in England aged 12–18 for track and field, cross country and race walking.

The events are used to select the English team for the Schools International Athletics Board competitions (which involve England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland) and the ISF World Schools' Cross Country Championships and World Schools Track & Field Championships.

Age groups

Age groups for the championships are defined based on a student's age on the 31st August of the school year in which the competition is held as follows:

Group (Boys, Girls)	Age at 31st August	Age at Event	School Year
Junior (JB, JG)	13–14	12–14	8–9
Intermediate (IB, IG)	15–16	14–16	10–11
Senior (SB, SG)	17–18	16–18	12–13

Track and field championships

The track and field championships have been held every year since 1925 (except for 1940–1945 due to WWII) and are the 4th largest athletics event in the world. Since 2003 they have been held at the major athletics venues of Birmingham Alexander Stadium, Gateshead International Stadium and former Sheffield Don Valley Stadium.

To be eligible to compete students must attain an entry standard. Each county selects a team for the championships from the eligible students attending schools in their area subject to various constraints including maximum team sizes and students only being allowed to participate in a single individual event at the championships. Teams earn points based on the finishing position of their students in each event and their performances levels. The teams compete for various trophies based on their points earned. Since 1951 Essex have attained the overall highest points total the most times.

Venues and champions since 1925

#	Year	Venue	Winning Team
1	1925	Crystal Palace	multiple
2	1926	Stamford Bridge	multiple
3	1927	Stamford Bridge	multiple
4	1928	Stamford Bridge	multiple
5	1929	Stamford Bridge	multiple
6	1930	Stamford Bridge	multiple
7	1931	Reading	multiple
8	1932	Guildford	multiple
9	1933	Southend-on-Sea	multiple
10	1934	Blackpool	multiple
11	1935	Kettering	multiple
12	1936	Margate	multiple
13	1937	Brighton	multiple
14	1938	Derby	multiple
15	1939	Loughborough	multiple
16	1946	Eton	multiple
17	1947	Hull	multiple
18	1948	Bath	multiple
19	1949	Carshalton	multiple
20	1950	Port Sunlight	multiple
21	1951	Southampton	Middlesex
22	1952	Bradford	Yorkshire
23	1953	Uxbridge	Middlesex
24	1954	Ashington	Yorkshire
25	1955	Manchester	Surrey
26	1956	Plymouth	Yorkshire
27	1957	Southampton	Essex
28	1958	Houghton-le-Spring	Lancashire
29	1959	Northwich	Essex
30	1960	Shrewsbury	Middlesex
31	1961	Chesterfield	Middlesex/Yorkshire
32	1962	Hull	Yorkshire
33	1963	Chelmsford	Yorkshire
34	1964	Hendon	Yorkshire
35	1965	Watford	Lancashire
36	1966	Blackburn	Essex
37	1967	Peterborough	Lancashire
38	1968	Portsmouth	Lancashire
39	1969	Motspur Park	Essex
40	1970	Solihull	Lancashire
41	1971	Crystal Palace	Lancashire
42	1972	Usworth Washington	Warwickshire
43	1973	Bebington	Warwickshire
44	1974	Shrewsbury	Middlesex
45	1975	Durham	Middlesex
46	1976	Cannock	Middlesex
47	1977	Hendon	Essex
48	1978	Chesterfield	Essex
49	1979	Nottingham	West Midlands
50	1980	Knowsley	Essex
51	1981	Yeovil	West Midlands
52	1982	Birmingham	West Midlands
53	1983	Plymouth	West Midlands
54	1984	Thurrock	West Midlands
55	1985	Hull	West Midlands
56	1986	Portsmouth	West Midlands
57	1987	Birmingham	West Midlands
58	1988	Yeovil	West Midlands
59	1989	Wigan	Kent
60	1990	Derby	West Midlands
61	1991	Stoke	West Midlands
62	1992	Hull	Essex
63	1993	Blackpool	West Midlands
64	1994	Telford	Essex
65	1995	Nottingham	Essex
66	1996	Sheffield	Essex
67	1997	Sheffield	Essex
68	1998	Exeter	Essex
69	1999	Bury St. Edmunds	Essex
70	2000	Sheffield	Essex
71	2001	Exeter	Essex
72	2002	Nottingham	Surrey
73	2003	Sheffield	Essex
74	2004	Gateshead	Essex
75	2005	Birmingham	Essex
76	2006	Gateshead	Kent
77	2007	Birmingham	Essex
78	2008	Gateshead	Essex
79	2009	Sheffield	Essex
80	2010	Birmingham	Surrey
81	2011	Gateshead	Essex
82	2012	Gateshead	Surrey
83	2013	Birmingham	Surrey
84	2014	Birmingham	Surrey
85	2015	Gateshead	Essex
86	2016	Gateshead

Championship Records (as at 28 June 2015)

Age Group	Event	Mark	Athlete	County	Year
JB	100 m	10.84	Kesi Oludoyi	Hertfordshire	2013
JB	200 m	22.20	Michael Williams	Hampshire	1986
JB	300 m	35.21	Joseph Massimo	Surrey	2014
JB	800 m	1:56.10	Craig Winrow	Lancashire	1986
JB	1500 m	4:03.60	Douglas Stones	Humberside	1979
JB	80 m hurdles	10.75	Daniel Davies	Surrey	2002
JB	4 × 100 m relay	43.51		Surrey	2005
JB	High jump	1.96	Richard Byers	Cumbria	2005
JB	Long jump	6.68	Onen Eyong	London	1999
JB	Triple jump	13.86	Jamie Quarry	Kent	1987
JB	Pole vault	4.30	Neil Winter	Avon	1988
JB	Shot put	18.29	Michael Wheeler	Surrey	2006
JB	Discus throw	54.54	Curtis Griffith-Parker	London	2005
JB	Javelin throw	61.28	Oliver Bradfield	Norfolk	2010
JB	Hammer throw	70.78	Andrew Tolputt	Berkshire	1982
IB	100 m	10.54	Mark Lewis-Francis	West Midlands	1998
IB	200 m	21.44	Dean Daniel	Cleveland	2003
IB	400 m	47.18	Chris Clarke	Berkshire	2006
IB	800 m	1:50.93	Michael Rimmer	Merseyside	2002
IB	1500 m	3:49.15	Matthew Shirling	Merseyside	2012
IB	3000 m	8:20.00	Kevin Steere	Norfolk	1971
IB	100 m hurdles	12.70	Jack Meredith	Merseyside	2008
IB	400 m hurdles	52.63	Nathan Woodward	Warwickshire	2006
IB	1500 m steeplechase	4:13.56	Zac Seddon	Berkshire	2010
IB	4 × 100 m relay	41.85		London	2010
IB	High jump	2.12	Femi Abejide	London	1981
IB	Long jump	7.47	Bernard Yeboah	Surrey	2002
IB	Triple jump	15.91	Jonathan Moore	West Midlands	2000
IB	Pole vault	4.71	Joel Leon Benitez	Nottinghamshire	2014
IB	Shot put	20.48	Carl Myerscough	Lancashire	1996
IB	Discus throw	61.24	Emeka Udechuku	London	1995
IB	Javelin throw	77.12	James Whiteaker	Kent	2014
IB	Hammer throw	73.58	Andrew Tolputt	Berkshire	1984
SB	100 m	10.40	Mike Powell	London	1980
SB	200 m	20.98	Julian Thomas	West Midlands	2005
SB	400 m	46.26	Mark Hylton	Berkshire	1995
SB	800 m	1:48.60	Paul Burgess	Leicestershire	1989
SB	1500 m	3:45.90	Clifton Bradeley	Staffordshire	1984
SB	3000 m	8:10.50	John Nuttall	Lancashire	1985
SB	110 m hurdles	13.69	Jack Meredith	Merseyside	2010
SB	400 m hurdles	51.50	Max Robertson	Somerset	1982
SB	2000 m steeplechase	5:38.20	Spencer Duval	Staffordshire	1989
SB	4 × 100 m relay	41.28		Middlesex	2009
SB	High jump	2.25	Geoff Parsons	Kent	1983
SB	Long jump	7.68	Jonathan Moore	West Midlands	2001
SB	Triple jump	15.92	Lawrence Lynch	London	1985
SB	Pole vault	5.16	Ben Flint	South Yorkshire	1998
SB	Shot put	20.64	Carl Myerscough	Somerset	1998
SB	Discus throw	61.87	Lawrence Okoye	Surrey	2010
SB	Javelin throw	72.89	David Parker	North Yorkshire	1998
SB	Hammer throw	74.42	Taylor Campbell	Middlesex	2014
JG	100 m	11.58	Ashleigh Nelson	Staffordshire	2005
JG	200 m	24.00	Diane Smith	Middlesex	1989
JG	800 m	2:06.22	Tilly Simpson	Derby	2015
JG	1500 m	4:23.58	Jessica Judd	Essex	2009
JG	75 m hurdles	10.99	Danielle Rooney	Lancashire	2005
JG	4 × 100 m relay	47.37		Surrey	2012
JG	High jump	1.77	Lee Haggett	London	1986
JG	Long jump	6.22	Margaret Cheetham	Merseyside	1983
JG	Shot put	13.92	Susan King	Suffolk	1979
JG	Discus throw	39.89	Sophie Mace	Surrey	2013
JG	Javelin throw	44.23	Freya Jones	Hampshire	2008
IG	100 m	11.81	Joscelynn Hopeson	Surrey	2004
IG	200 m	23.62	Vernicha James	London	2000
IG	300 m	37.93	Cheriece Hylton	Kent	2013
IG	800 m	2:05.60	Jo White	Surrey	1977
IG	1500 m	4:16.24	Georgia Peel	Hampshire	2009
IG	3000 m	9:27.15	Harriet Knowles-Jones	Greater Manchester	2014
IG	80 m hurdles	11.10	Angela Thorp	South Yorkshire	1989
IG	80 m hurdles	11.10	Serita Solomon	Kent	2005
IG	300 m hurdles	41.48	Perri Shakes-Drayton	London	2005
IG	4 × 100 m relay	46.40		Nottinghamshire	1984
IG	High jump	1.83	Aileen Wilson	Leicestershire	2000
IG	Long jump	6.38	Margaret Cheetham	Merseyside	1985
IG	Triple jump	12.22	Amy Williams	Cheshire	2013
IG	Pole vault	3.93	Molly Caudery	Cornwall	2015
IG	Shot put	15.08	Sophie McKinna	Norfolk	2010
IG	Discus throw	49.36	Claire Smithson	Sussex	1999
IG	Javelin throw	52.21	Emma Hamplett	Staffordshire	2014
IG	Hammer throw	58.83	Katie Head	Essex	2015
SG	100 m	11.59	Rebecca Drummond	Staffordshire	1995
SG	200 m	23.40	Simone Jacobs	Berkshire	1984
SG	400 m	54.33	Hayley Jones	Cheshire	2006
SG	800 m	2:05.18	Danni Barnes	Devon	2003
SG	1500 m	4:15.08	Amy Griffiths	Leicestershire	2014
SG	3000 m	9:04.30	Paula Radcliffe	Bedfordshire	1992
SG	100 m hurdles	13.50	Lesley-Anne Skeete	Somerset	1986
SG	400 m hurdles	57.81	Hayley McLean	Essex	2013
SG	1500 m steeplechase	4:44.83	Louise Webb	Hampshire	2009
SG	4 × 100 m relay	45.60		Avon	1979
SG	High jump	1.88	Vikki Hubbard	Lincolnshire	2006
SG	Pole vault	3.85	Lucy Bryan	Avon	2012
			Livvy Connor	Sussex	2015
			Abigail Roberts	West Yorkshire	2015
SG	Long jump	6.65	Fiona May	Derbyshire	1989
SG	Triple jump	12.88	Ahtollah Rose	Greater Manchester	2011
SG	Shot put	15.65	Eden Francis	Leicestershire	2007
SG	Discus throw	52.74	Claire Smithson	Sussex	2001
SG	Javelin throw	50.54	Izzy Jeffs	Somerset	2010
SG	Hammer throw	61.65	Sophie Hitchon	Lancashire	2009

Cross country championships

The cross country championships have been held every year since 1960 for boys and 1968 for girls (except for 2001 due to the foot-and-mouth outbreak). Originally separate events were held for boys and girls but since 1989 they have always been combined.

Combined events and race walking championships

A separate championships is held each year for combined events and race walking. For combined events students compete in the track and field pentathlon (JB, JG), heptathlon (IG, SG), octathlon (IB) and decathlon (SB) events. For race walking students compete over 3000 metres (JB, JG, IG) and 5000 metres (IB, SB, SG).

Notable competitors

Many competitors at the English Schools' Athletics Championships have gone on to win Olympic and World Championship medals including multiple gold medallists Mo Farah, Jessica Ennis-Hill, Kelly Holmes and Greg Rutherford.

Olympic and World Medallists at the English Schools' Athletics Championships

Athlete	Olympic/World Medals	English Schools' Athletics Championships Results
		Senior	Intermediate	Junior
Mo Farah	5000 m, 2015 Worlds 10,000 m, 2015 Worlds 5000 m, 2013 Worlds 10,000 m, 2013 Worlds 5000 m, 2012 Olympics 10,000 m, 2012 Olympics 5000 m, 2011 Worlds 10,000 m, 2011 Worlds	1500 m, 2001	1500 m, 1999 cross country, 1999 3000 m, 1998 cross country, 1998	1500 m, 1997
Jessica Ennis-Hill	heptathlon, 2015 Worlds heptathlon, 2012 Olympics heptathlon, 2011 Worlds heptathlon, 2009 Worlds		high Jump, 2002	high jump, 2000 10th, high jump, 1999 15th, heptathlon, 1999
Kelly Holmes	800 m, 2004 Olympics 1500 m, 2004 Olympics			1500 m, 1987
Greg Rutherford	long jump, 2015 Worlds long jump, 2012 Olympics		4th, long jump, 2004 4th, long jump, 2003	5th, long jump, 2001
Alistair Brownlee	triathlon, 2012 Olympics	cross country, 2006
Phillips Idowu	triple jump, 2009 Worlds	triple jump, 1997 triple jump, 1996
Paula Radcliffe	marathon, 2005 Worlds	3000 m, 1992 1500 m, 1991		8th, 1500 m, 1988
Kelly Sotherton	heptathlon, 2004 Olympics heptathlon, 2007 Worlds	long jump, 1995 heptathlon, 1994	heptathlon, 1992 4th, 300 m, 1992
Darren Campbell	100 m, 2003 Worlds 200 m, 2000 Olympics		200 m, 1989	200 m, 1988
Dean Macey	decathlon, 2001 Worlds decathlon, 1999 Worlds	decathlon, 1995
Jonathan Brownlee	triathlon, 2012 Olympics	11th, cross country, 2008	23rd, 3000 m, 2006	146th, cross country, 2004
Lisa Dobriskey	1500 m, 2009 Worlds	1500 m, 2001	800 m, 1999	800 m, 1998 4th, cross country, 1998 5th, 800 m, 1997
Hannah England	1500 m, 2011 Worlds	1500 m, 2005	12th, cross country, 2003	5th, 1500 m, 2001 61st, cross country, 2000
Nicola Sanders	400 m, 2007 Worlds	400 m hurdles, 2000 400 m hurdles, 1999	300 m, 1998 4th, 200 m, 1997
Tasha Danvers	400 m hurdles, 2008 Olympics	100 m hurdles, 1995	300 m hurdles, 1994 300 m hurdles, 1993
Robert Grabarz	high jump, 2012 Olympics	high jump, 2005	high jump, 2004
Jenny Meadows	800 m, 2009 Worlds	5th, 400 m, 1999 400 m, 1998	5th, 300 m, 1997	800 m, 1995
Perri Shakes-Drayton	400 m hurdles, 2010 Worlds	Heats, 400 m hurdles, 2006	300 m hurdles, 2005 Final, 300 m hurdles, 2004	Heats, 200 m, 2003
Andy Turner	110 m hurdles, 2011 Worlds	110 m hurdles, 1999	100 m hurdles, 1997

External links

English Schools' Athletic Association