It is our sincere wish to provide suitable competitive opportunities for Masters athletes in the UK during 2021, especially as there was very limited competition during 2020 and the indoor season. We have however had a late start to the planning process due to Maurice’s ill health and Covid restrictions etc.
The challenges faced in the current times should not be underestimated and we have had to:
- Find suitable dates in an already congested and condensed track season and (previously suspended) national calendar;
- Find suitable venues that meet our specific needs (and there are not many for the national championships and lots of venues are not yet open or taking bookings);
- Ensure the dates do not clash with too many other events which will impact negatively on our ability to secure the necessary officials or technology (it should be noted that other events have been added after our events were published nationally);
- Tie all of this together to form a fixture schedule (which cannot be confirmed until UKA confirm fixtures and issue licenses) and, most importantly;
- Ensure we act responsibly in respect of our members’ and officials health and wellbeing including the increased risk to our older athletes/officials of COVID-19, as well as increased injury risk and prevention, being mindful that our members have had little or no access to tracks and technical event training for some time, as well as mitigating any risk of cancellation due to local Covid issues that may arise.
To that end, we have now completed a draft fixture programme which for a number of reasons looks different to the usual programme. There is something for everyone but we appreciate that we won’t be able to please everyone with what we will provide this year. Details below:
| Date | Venue | Event | Rationale |
| 26 June 27 June |
Sheffield Oxford |
PentathlonThrows Pentathlon5K races incl walks | Outdoor pentathlon rather that full heptathlon and decathlon – we feel this will support our athletes transition back into competitive/full multi events whilst access to technical event training facilities has been limited. |
| 24 July 1 August |
Trafford Lee Valley |
Regional North Regional South |
This will bring the competition to the athletes and minimize/reduce the increased risks associated with the need for travel and overnight stays as well as large athlete numbers as the government roadmap eases. |
| 21-22 August | Derby | BMAF Championships | This will be divided into 2 age bands (35-54 and 55+) on separate days. This will reduce the numbers in the stadium at any one time – mitigating any continued requirement for restricted numbers, social distancing etc as well as allow a more manageable timetable (UKA guidelines recommend a 6 hr day whereas the previous BMAF champs have been closer to 10 hr days). |
| 18 September | Jarrow | 10K Championships | Incorporated into another event. |
These will be added to the BMAF fixtures page.
There will be a number of other improvements which I will hope to begin to implement from this year also, many of which have come out of the masters’ athlete advisory group that I have chaired over the past year.
I also plan to seek feedback after each event so we can continually develop and improve the events we provide for you.
Kay Reynolds
Acting T&F Secretary
On behalf of BMAF