A keen hockey player and brother to Chloe Bown, who made waves in the pool at Orkney 2025, the U18 does have some history in the jumps but had not shown his excellence to a Guernsey audience until debuting four weeks ago.
Yet in jumping beyond the Games A standard with 1.88m at Sunday’s Aztec Track and Field Series round three, and coming practically a heel clip short of joining the exclusive 1.90m club, Bown has brought the event to new heights at Footes Lane.
‘I didn’t know I had that in me,’ he said after an effort that also hit the English Schools standard.
‘I thought I’d be a bit lower, but I’m really happy with what I’ve done.
‘When I was younger at my old school [in Somerset], I used to do triple jump and long jump, but now I’ve come here, done a high jump competition and realised I’m a lot better at that.’
He now hopes to be on the plane for the Faroe Islands next year, adding: ‘I’d like to go – it’d be good. Nice place as well.’
Although Bown is already eighth on Guernsey’s all-time list, he finished feeling adamant the 1.90m is within his reach.
‘It’s annoying I messed up my first jump – I think I could get it if I had another one,’ he added.
Among the women, U18 Nikola Vagule cleared a Games B standard of 1.54m, but the next height – 1.59m for an A standard and PB – just evaded her.
The cool, mildly breezy conditions present at Footes Lane provided a change from the heatwave in the build-up to this meet, which also featured new junior records on track and field.
Emil Friedrich extended his discus U16 record even further but just missed out on the next major barrier, throwing an excellent 39.99m.
He finished ahead of top seniors James Bougourd (34.15m) and Tom Brierley (33.18m) albeit with a lighter implement.
In the 100m, U16 Amelie Van Heerden initially seemed to have matched her PB and Guernsey age-group record with another classy run of 12.27sec.
But it went from good to better when the rangy sprinter’s time was rounded to 12.26, improving her U16 mark together with tying Isabelle Lowe’s U18 record. She finished 0.61sec. clear of three-time Island Games sprint hurdles champion Rhiannon Dowinton’s season’s best and B standard.
U18 Theo Le Tissier proved an expected winner in the men’s event, striding away to finish in 11.20.
But he was given a relatively close run by the improving Jake Taylor, who just missed the B standard with a PB of 11.47.
In the 400m, Manchester Met student Lorcan Gallagher showed off his strong form – which has already seen him run a B standard in Stretford – in a duel against U18 Tom Holt.
He had no one to chase and although his rival came back at him in the dying metres, Gallagher held on to take the win somewhat outside his best in 52.19, with Holt claiming a PB of 52.38.
The strong turnout from up-and-coming athletes included U18 Olivia Whitmore making her debut over the 400m hurdles.
Taking on the discipline solo and having never raced the quarter-mile before, even on the flat, she went through 200m in the 32sec. range and held on to post a B standard of 1-08.06.
The longest track event, the 1,500m, brought talking points on both the men’s and women’s side.
Paced for most of the way by elder brother Emil, U14 and overall favourite Paul Friedrich lapped at an ambitious tempo initially before settling into a mid-race groove.
A fast finish sealed him a PB of 4-14.92, which also puts him top of the national rankings for his age group.
Veteran Toby Mann ran a solid solo race for runner-up in 4-23.85 as U18 James Stafford-Bell, in third, posted a barrier-breaking 4-29.83.
A great women’s battle had in-form U20 Eleanor Jamieson setting a swift pace over the first two laps before established Island Games athlete Nix Dobson came through on the third.
Ultimately, Dobson used her strength to take the win in a season’s best of 4-49.07, followed ever-so-closely by U16 Grace King another 0.31sec. back.
Jamieson’s big PB of 4-50.07 – easily a B standard for the Faroes – provided any consolation needed for having to settle for third.
In the javelin, previous Games medallist James Bougourd opened with a 45.45m, which he improved by another 1cm on his final effort.
Jersey Spartans U14 girl Bobbi Billington threw second-furthest overall with 27.66m using her lighter 400g implement.
