Chris Baker took a starring role as City of Norwich AC's new generation of athletes competed in the South of England Under-15 and Under-17 Championships at Ashford inKent.

Chris Baker took a starring role as City of Norwich AC's new generation of athletes competed in the South of England Under-15 and

Under-17 Championships at Ashford inKent.

Under-17 athlete Baker soared over a title winning 2m in the high jump, a clearance that places him firmly at the top of the UK ranking list.

Harriet Lucas came up against some tough opposition in the under-17 girls' 200m but took a bronze in 24.74secs. Josh Rea finished a creditable fifth in the under-17 boys 400m hurdles when recording 58.94 and was delighted to come away with a bronze medal from the 1500m steeplechase in which he posted a time of 4:43.21.

After cruising through his heat in the under-17 boys 800m James Senior found the final a lot tougher and had to settle for seventh place in a respectable 1:57.86.

Under-15 competitor Laura Green bagged a brace in the medal stakes. She only qualified as a fastest loser for the 75m hurdles final in which she pulled out all the stops to take an impressive silver in a time of 11.73. She then went on to take the bronze medal in the triple jump when moving out to 10.09m. Chloe Smith cleared 1.55m in the under-15 girls high jump which was good enough for a bronze medal while in the under-15 girls hammer Jenna Cannell and Megan Thomas were making their mark.

Both relative newcomers to the event, Jenna moved the hammer out to 35.79m for silver and Megan produced an effort of 34.82m that was good enough to place her third.

Claire Pring had a tough battle in the final of the under-17 girls and despite finishing 11th she managed to produce a personal best time of 4:42.83.

The youngsters will again be testing themselves when they compete in the Norfolk Schools Championships at the UEA Sportspark on Saturday. Their goal will be selection for the Norfolk team to compete in the English Schools Championships.