BURY Athletic Club’s Christie Cook is travelling to Gateshead at the weekend to represent Greater Manchester in the English Schools’ Track and Field Championships in a bid to emulate her idol Kelly Holmes.

Double Olympic gold medal winner Holmes and Mo Farah, have competed at the event in previous years.

The Elton High School year nine pupil has been in outstanding form on the track, winning both the Greater Manchester and Greater Manchester Schools’ 800 metres titles in her age group, whilst reducing her personal best to 2.19.6 to be ranked fourth in the North West.

“I’m really looking forward to competing at Gateshead in such a large event and against the best runners in the country,” she said.

“My favourite athlete is Kelly Holmes and being able to compete in the same event that she once ran in is a great thrill.”

Meanwhile, Bury Athletic Club’s under-11s athletes took part in the Tom Pink Relays at SportCity and acquitted themselves superbly.

The relays took the form of athletes trying five different events as part of a pentathlon.

The events were the standing long jump, speed bounce, hi-stepper, vertical jump and javelin throw.

When the points for the event were totalled, most of the Bury team – Harriet Vaughan, Teegan Brady, Ella Dunn-Cassidy, Daniel Matthew and George Yates – all scored sufficient points to achieve a bronze award.

Star of the day was Ben Forrest, whose outstanding performances in the standing long jump, hi-stepper and javelin earned him a silver award.

All six shone in an endurance challenge to win gold awards.