BEATING his chest in jubilation, Dan Joyce produced a barnstorming performance to become English Schools champion over 800m.

A powerful burst in the final 300m left his rivals for dead, the Tynedale Harrier from Slaley again dipping under two minutes this season to take the junior boys’ crown at Birmingham’s English Schools Track and Field Championships.

The gold caps a remarkable year for Dan, representing Durham as a pupil at Blaydon’s St Thomas More, the youngster currently ranked UK number one at U15 level.

Dan went into the final, typically the most coveted event for young athletes, in great form and on the back of a fantastic personal best time of 1:56.48 at the British Milers Club event at Chester-le-Street.

Doing what was required to make the final by claiming the first qualifying spot from one of the four heats, he then went on to impress the large crowd by crossing the line in first place in 1:58.89.

He said: “I’m chuffed! It still hasn’t sunk in really, and it sorts of cements your place in history a bit. The comments I have had from teachers and friends, and the people from Tynedale Harriers, has been overwhelming, and the support from everybody has been great.

“The English Schools had been my main goal for the season, especially after I competed there last year as a year younger and just missed out on the final.

“I wanted to be on the podium but I didn’t know whether I would win it. I knew I was the top ranked runner going into the event, so I knew I would have a chance but to actually win it is amazing.”

Not only did Dan win the final, he did it in great style with a breathtaking break at 500m.

Sitting behind the two front runners who tried to dictate the pace, they were left for dead by the talented Tynedale runner.

After a slow first lap of 63.55 seconds, he had plenty in reserve to go for broke.

With the victory, Dan became the second Tyendale Harrier in three years to become English Schools champion after Max Pearson’s success in 2015, both under the expert leadership of coach Peter Venus.

Dan said: “My plan was to sit in second and kick on with 200 to go, but it was a bit of a slow first lap and everybody was in with a shout of winning at that point. I think if I left it any later to kick then I might not have won, so I made my decision to kick before the final straight.”

Dan’s success on the running track is also complementing his work in modern pentathlon, the multi-talented sportsman catching the eye in all five disciplines of the sport.

While running is his strongest suit, he is also excelling in the other events as he aims to take the multi-event sport further.

And he certainly has great promise in pentathlon, recently finishing third in the national championships after jumping up age categories to U17 after dominating the U15 class!

david.coulter@hexham-courant.co.uk