Borderer Robert Horton wins two medals at age of 11 at national under-13 indoor athletics championships

With no further cross-country race opportunities available this winter for his age group, the youngster, a pupil at St Ronan's Primary School in Innerleithen, switched to sprint and jumps training to try something different for a few weeks.

It quickly became evident that Horton, despite having only just turned 11, would not be out of his depth at the indoor championships as he stormed to a silver in the 60m in 8:58 after clocking 8:53 in his heat, only being beaten by the new Scottish U13 record holder.

He then jumped 4.51m for bronze in the long jump, sneaking a medal by a centimetre, again beaten only by a new Scottish record and a raider from England.

Another U13 sprint silver for the Borders went to Tweed Leader Jed Track’s Ava Lees, just missing gold by two-hundredths of a second, dipping to a time of 8:62. Another first-timer, Jessica Knox, of Jedburgh, was seventh in the same final in 8:90.

Kate Harvie, of Peebles, competing for Edinburgh Athletic Club, concluded her indoor season with 11.41m for silver in the U20 triple jump and was back the next day for fourth in the long jump with 5.15m.

Ewan Purves was also racing in the colours of the capital club, taking bronze by two-hundredths of a second in the U20 400m with a time of 50:52.

Teviotdale Harrier Conan Harper also raced to bronze in the U20 1,500m in 4:00:35, with Moorfoot’s Kieran Fulton, not yet 15, finishing 11th with a near nine-second personal best of 4:19:21.

Gala Harrier Ross Christie bettered that level of improvement by taking 10 seconds off his PB in finishing fifth in the final of the U15 boys’ 800m with a time of 2:14:47.

Also in action indoors at the weekend was Charlotte Clare, racing for Edinburgh University at the British Universities Indoor Athletics Championships in Sheffield, finishing fifth in the final of the 1,500m in 4:31:04. That took 2.5 seconds off her PB.