CoNAC in hunt for untapped talent

City of Norwich Athletics Club are holding an indoor competition to find Norfolk's stars of the future.

The Indoor Sportshall event takes place at Taverham High School on Saturday, 6 December for boys and girls of under-11, 13 and 15 age groups.

Competitors will take part in a multi-event tournament, with each taking a combined score from throwing, jumping and running events.

Entry forms can be obtained from the CoNAC and Active Norfolk websites.

Event co-ordinatior Ian McDonald is hoping it proves to be a good way to find talented athletes that would normally slip through their net.

"I'm absolutely sure that the club only see one in 12 [young athletes]," he said. "We've been to school events and seen youngsters that are fantastic but we never see them again.

"What we're doing is giving everyone the opportunity to come along, and hopefully it can be a talent spotting opportunity for all of us."

While London 2012 will come a bit too soon for most of the competitors at the event, the club have a lot of strong prospects for the games in four years' time.

Barbara Parker, who competed in the 3000m steeplechase in Beijing, still represents CoNAC in events despite living and training in Florida.

And McDonald believes there are plenty of Norwich athletes ready to follow her into Team GB.

"At the English Schools Championships they came back with three golds and a load of silver medals," she said.

"We then had the UK School Games where one of our number picked up a gold.

"Just recently at the Junior Commonwealth Games Rachel Stringer picked up a silver medal, and just last week Kiera Mooney was in South Africa at the World Biathlon Championships, just missing out on a medal."