Airdrie Harriers athlete Brodie Young put his experience at the World Junior Championships to good use, as he cruised to a 400m senior gold medal at the Scottish National Championships in Aberdeen earlier this month.
The 19-year-old topped the podium in the Granite City with a fantastic time of 47.13s, finishing ahead of Giffnock North’s Kyle Alexander (47.40s) and Dundee Hawkhill’s Scott Hannaway (49.09s).
Brodie’s effort was well inside Scottish Athletics’ ‘bronze standard time’ of 47.20s for the men’s 400m and helped him pocket a share of the £5000 prize pot on offer at the event.
That performance came after an incredible experience in Colombia the previous week with the Scotland U20 team, where he finished fourth in the final of the 4x400m mixed relay, and Brodie reckons that set him up well to deliver the goods at senior level.
The athlete, from Chryston, told Lanarkshire Live Sport :“It was a really good weekend, coming off the back of the World Junior Championships.
“At the worlds, I was part of the 4x400m mixed relay and we came fourth in the final. I was also part of the 4x400m men’s relay but we were knocked out in the heats.
“But it was a great experience for me and a great learning curve.
“That was my first world junior championship so that gave me a lot of confidence going into the Scottish Senior Championships, knowing I’d already performed well in Colombia.
“It’s a nice way to end the season by getting just under that target time of 47.2 for the bronze medal standard and the prize pot money.”
Brodie revealed he will split his prize of £216 with long-term coach James McMenemy.
He added: “Some of it will go to my coach as well, considering all the hard work he has put in this year, so I’ll split it with him.
“He’s been my coach for eight years now and the hard work we’ve put in during that time is all starting to pay off now, so I’m really happy with that.
“47.13 was a good time and because I’d been away in Colombia the week before, having some problems with my calf and my hamstring due to the travelling, I was relatively happy with the performance on the day.”
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