Charlotte shines again with victory at Wigan meeting

Two weeks ago, the 17-year-old – a sports student and elite athlete at Burnley College – won bronze, competing for Great Britain in the Under 20s hammer at the prestigious Halle Throws International.

The Blackburn Harrier – coached by Michael Hitchon, father of former World junior champion and 2016 Olympic bronze medallist Sophie – was third after a best of 60.89m.

And she was again over 60m on Sunday, as she claimed victory in the A competition at Wigan in a North of England League Division 1 meet, with a best effort of 60.31m.

The throw was another in a series of consistent performances this season, in which she has broken her personal best time and again.

That currently stands at 61.80m, well inside the European Junior Championship standard, achieved at the end of May in Blackburn in a UK Youth Development U17/U20 League Division North West 3 meeting.

And that throw came the week after moving to sixth on the UK all-time list for the Under 20 women’s hammer, with another PB of 60.67m, again in the UK YDL in Blackburn.

Earlier in May, the UK Under 20 number one won the gold medal at the Lancashire County Track and Field Championships at the Stanley Park Arena in Blackpool, with a best throw of 58m.

She had started the season with a huge five-metre PB, set at Loughborough in the Alan Bertram Memorial Hammer Open, where she competed in both the Senior Women and Under 20 Women’ categories.

She was third in the Senior Women’s event (4kg) with a massive new PB throw by four metres, of 58.67m, and 45 minutes later, lined up for the Under 20 competition where she improved her personal best with 59.09m, which gave her the qualifying distance for the European Junior Championships.

The former St Augustine’s, Billington pupil’s form is all the more impressive, considering she only managed to throw in competition six times last year – earning five wins and one third place.

She had to contend with surgery on her meniscus and anterior cruciate ligament, injuries, which can be career threatening in some instances.

This weekend sees Bedford host the England Athletics Under 20 track and field championships, with the top seven ranked throwers in action.