Former Morpeth Harrier Ross Charlton helps Team GB to Team Silver at the Modern Pentathlon Junior World Championships

Team GB with Ross Charlton, centre, at the World Junior Pentathlon Championships. Picture: UPIM

With all four members of the team having made it through the qualifying rounds, 36 competitors lined up for Saturday’s final.

Charlton began the event well, scoring 19 wins against 16 defeats in the fencing and adding a further three victories in the bonus round.

The day’s second challenge was the relatively new Obstacle Course Racing (OCR), due to replace the traditional horse riding after 2024’s Paris Olympics. However, as Pentathlon GB have twin-tracked Charlton as both a Junior and a Senior competitor, he had largely focused on show jumping this year while many of his younger rivals had practised extensively over the new OCR.

He slipped further back down the leader board in the 200m freestyle swim, falling to 28th place, with only the combined 3,000m Laser Run still to come.

Always a fine runner from his early days with Morpeth Harriers, where he formed part of a group that included triathlete Dan Dixon and which was coached by the late Tony Ward, Charlton stormed to the fastest time of the competition, 9:47, only a second outside his own Junior World Record.

The run took him to fifth place overall and only 11 seconds off the podium.

Morpeth Harrier Jane Hodgson was back to winning ways in Sunday’s 42nd Northumberland Coastal Run from Beadnell to Alnmouth.

This was a remarkable sixth victory in the event for Hodgson, who has very much made the course her own over the years.

This time Hodgson placed a remarkable 13th overall in a time of 1:30:42, with nearest rival Tyne Bridge Harrier Rebecca Blain nearly five minutes behind.

Morpeth’s Shaun Land was first male home from the club in 18th place and picked up a prize as third Senior.

Thropton Show on Saturday included the challenging six-mile fell race.

Heaton Harrier Chris Larkin was overall winner, with members of Morpeth Harriers finishing in third, fourth and fifth place.

Over-40 John Butters placed third in 57:02, with KEVI sixth-former Liam Roche fourth.

Cat Macdonald was fastest female finisher, fifth overall, with father Alistair seventh.