Five West Cumbrian sports stars show their talents!

18th July 2008

FIVE young sports people from West Cumbria have been proving that they’ve got bags of sporting talent.

In such diverse disciplines as golf, running, football, karate and motorcycling they are reaching for the top.

Lauren Crawford, aged 13, has won at the Commonwealth Karate Championships.

Seb Crookall-Nixon, 14, is the England U16 golf champion and next week competes in the U18 tournament.

Motorcyclist Jonny Walker has already made it into the ACE British World Trials team despite being only 17.

Runner Laura Park has again won gold - this time in the 3000m in the English Schools Athletics Championships at the International Staidum, Gateshead.

And footballer Connor Tinnion, 17, from Cockermouth, is being given a shot at the big-time with Carlisle Utd.

Lauren Crawford, of Seaton and a pupil at StainburnS chool, was one of 30 youngsters fighting for the Commonwealth title in Edinburgh.

She said: “I am chuffed. I was quite surprised because I had to compete against a lot of people.

“I came second in the fighting round. I was against people from England, Scotland, Wales, India, South Africa, New Zealand, Canada and Botswana.”

And she’s already training hard for her next tournament, which is in India and for which she needs to raise over £1,200.

Lauren travels to Penrith twice a week and Wolverhampton at the weekend to train. She is a brown belt and is working towards getting her black belt.

She said: “I have been doing karate for four years. When I was eight I was doing dancing. My brother, Kane, told me about karate and I tried it.”

Seb Crookall-Nixon, of Papcastle, will aim to complete a notable double when he competes in the English Boys U18 Open Stroke Play Championship at Wallasey Golf Club on Tuesday-Thursday next week. For the 14-year-old has already won the U16 title to lift the McGregor Trophy at High Post in Wiltshire, winning by two strokes from Jamie Carney from Birmingham in a quality field of home and overseas players.

That win has already put Crookall-Nixon, a member of Workington and Cockermouth golf clubs, in line for selection later in the year to the England U16 and U18 teams.

In the four-round U16 championship he carded closing rounds of 71 and 68 for an aggregate of 278, two under par.

Seb, the only player to finish under par, began the final day three strokes behind Paul McPhee from Scotland but his morning 71 put him into a four-way tie on 210 with a round left.

And his closing 68 was the perfect way to win the title although he would have finished even more emphatically but for bogeys at the final two holes.

He said: “Hopefully this will see my golfing career take off. Things will change dramatically after this and hopefully I’ll catch the eye of the England selectors.

“I wasn’t feeling confident at the start of the week because I didn’t practice that well. But I felt two under would be good enough to win and I was proved right.”

Laura Park’s gold success for Cumbria at Gateshead has brought her an invitation to run in the presitigious London Grand Prix at Crystal Palace.

But it means the Ellenborough Athletics Club teenager has had to reject the chance to represent England in the British Schools championships at Bedford.

In the Grand Prix she will compete in the junior women’s 3000 metres on her first visit to the famous circuit for the televised event.

Laura, aged 16, said: “It is probably bigger than the international at Bedford. I’m going for the experience.

“It will be really tough as a lot of the girls will be 18 or 19 so will be a bit stronger. I’ll be in the middle of the pack.”

Park hopes to run in the 2012 London Olympics though she is not looking too far ahead.

She said: “That’s more of a dream at the minute. I’d certainly like to be there but you never know what could happen in four years.”

Park claimed her fifth British or national title of the year on Saturday in the intermediate girls’ 3000m at the English Schools championship at Gateshead International Stadium.

Representing Cumbria Schools, the former Netherhall Sports College student was the only county athlete to win a medal, adopting fresh tactics against her classy rivals.

“Normally I would choose to run from the front and take the race on,” she added. “This time I let someone else take the pace on and I settled in for four of the seven laps, then I kicked.

“Because it was a big race and I knew some girls would be close to me, I didn’t want to get too excited and burn out.”

She was over six seconds ahead of her nearest rival at the line, crossing in 9.46.

Trials bike whizzkid Jonny Walker is really motoring after Cumbrian food supplier Caterite and its drinks partner Grapevine stepped in to sponsor him.

Walker, 17, has earned a place in this year's ACE British World Trials Team, which is competing all over Europe during the summer.

The former Keswick School pupil, now an electrical apprentice, first took up motorcycle trials when he was just four.

The sport is not cheap as Walker’ Sherco 125cc machine costs nearly £4,000, with essentials like boots (£140) and helmet (£90) on top of soaring travel costs.

Jonny, from Keswick, has received a major financial boost from Embleton-based Caterite Foodservice and from Grapevine Wineservice Company, who are giving him £1,000 sponsorship for this summer's European U18 competition.

He said: "It is fantastic of the company to back me like this. I couldn't believe it when they told me. I want to thank both Caterite and Grapevine."

Walker is the only Cumbrian in the two-boy and two-girl ACE British World Trials Team, which is competing in France and Italy this summer.

Motorcycle trials involves competitors riding over courses strewn with hazards like rocks and streams, with points deducted for stopping or touching a foot down.

The young Cumbrian, who trains on his bike at a disused quarry, has his sights set on winning the British championship for his age group.

Caterite chairman Keith Graham said: "As a local company, we are delighted to help a talented young Cumbrian sportsman.

“Jonny is clearly doing very well nationally and is now set to embark on European competition.

“Hopefully other local companies will be encouraged to support him financially.”

Anyone interested in sponsoring Walker can contact him on 017687 74165.

He also already competed in France, Italy and Czech Republic finishing 15th in each round.

Walker took part last weekend in a round of the British Championship and came rode third, the position he holds overall in the series.

He said: “Hopefully I’m going to use Caterite’s money to go to Sweden at the end of August.”

And Walker will be riding closer to home next weekend when the British Championship comes to High Hesket.

The July 26 event is a tester for a world championship round to be held there next year.

Carlisle Utd boss John Ward has drafted Connor Tinnion, a member of the club’s academy, into their first team training camp near Glasgow this week.

It caps an impressive first season at Brunton Park as Connor’s rapid progress in the youth team and the reserves has attracted John Ward’s attention.

The manager is tipping a bright future for the youngster is likely to figure in tomorrow’s friendly against Scottish division one side Partick Thistle.

Tinnion, who left Cockermouth School only last summer, was part of the Carlisle team which reached the quarter-final of the FA Youth Cup last season, losing 2-0 to Aston Villa at BruntonPark.

Ward said: “Connor has had a very good year and deserves his chance. He came to my attention last summer as he played a number of reserve games and I also saw him in the juniors.

“He has an exceptionally good left foot and we think this young man has a lot of potential.”