Comeback runner wins a silver

A WARRINGTON runner who spent three months on crutches last year has completed a remarkable comeback by winning a silver medal in the English Schools Championships.
Priestley College’s Jack Gleave, who suffered a fractured tibia a year ago, was unsure whether he would return to form after excelling at 800 metres since he was 12 years old.
Jack, who is on the Sport Performance and Excellence BTEC course, said he had dedicated himself to a full and speedy recovery.
He said: “I did everything you can think of to make sure I recovered.
“I was doing stretching exercises twice a day and was in the pool every day as well.”
The Orford youngster’s commitment paid off in the schools championships as he finished second despite being drawn in the dreaded lane one.
Jack, who works as a waiter at Chapelford Farm restaurant, went into the event short on competitive runs and ranked 15th due to his injury timeout.
Against the best under 20s in the country he kept up with the leading pack throughout but believes a tactical error may have cost him gold.
“I kicked in too early and if I’d left it another 10 metres I might have won,” he said.
Jack’s talent for the 800 metres started to emerge while he was at William Beamont School and he got picked up by coaches at Warrington Athletics Club.
He now trains six days a week and twice on four of those days, before and after attending lessons at Priestley College.
Last year he trained with Nijel Amos who won silver in the 800 metres at the London Olympics.
The 18-year-old believes that training helped him to perform well in the English Schools Championships despite his injury, which was brought on by over training.
“This year I haven’t had the same fitness due to my injury, but I learnt from him about how to control my nerves before a race,” said Jack.
“It has made such a difference to me along with the support of my coach Phil Hicken at Warrington Athletics who has been great.”