Druce races to set up and promote sprint star line-up
TOM DRUCE achieved so much in his athletics career, but now his competition days are behind him he has been highlighting his best entrepreneurial skills.
In putting together what promises to be the best track and field programme since the days of the Healthspan and then Blue Islands Challenge meetings of the early 2000s, the new GIAAC athletics development officer has used his many contacts to pull together a cracking programme of events for tomorrow's Intertrust 10th Anniversary meeting at Footes Lane.
As well as an Olympic Games gold-medallist – sprint relay man Mark Lewis-Francis – and two other former GB Olympians in sprinter Montell Douglas, 400m runner Richard Buck, Druce has snapped up current international stars from as far afield as Sudan and Malta, plus a host of quality UK runners.
The island is therefore guaranteed the fastest 100m ever staged locally, headed by Mark Lewis-Francis, who brought home the baton when Great Britain won Olympic 4x100m gold in Athens, 11 years ago.
Druce is excited by the prospect of seeing so many quality athletes on the start line.
'As well as Lewis-Francis' obvious calibre, the acquisition to the race of Ojie Edoburun, Reuben Arthur and Rechmial Miller is particularly exciting,' he said.
Edoburun is the reigning European Champion at Junior (under-20) level having taken the crown earlier this summer in Sweden, and he is hungry to put down a fast time to back up his championship win.
He is also expecting all-comers' records to fall in the other 'premium events' of the afternoon, the women's 100m, men's 400m and women's 1500m.
Entry is free and events run throughout the afternoon starting from 1pm. The Guernsey Rugby Club bar will be open serving drinks all afternoon from 1pm to 6pm.
