Athletics
Athletics is a thriving sport with a proud tradition at Marlborough College. The Bruce Tulloh Pavilion is the home of the athletics track, refurbished in 2020, named after former beak and the 1962 5,000m European Champion Bruce Tulloh, who famously ran barefoot. Bruce helped to embed Marlborough’s tradition for track and field athletics, and the club has more recently developed into a year-round sport for its most dedicated athletes, with pupils crowned Wiltshire Champions and reaching the English Schools’ National Championships every year.
Marcus Sharrad
Head of Athletics
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Facilities
Marlborough has one of the most beautifully situated all-weather 400-metre tracks in the country watched over by the white horse on Granham Hill. There is a newly-refurbished pavilion and natural viewing points all around. The track also houses two shot put rings, a long jump and triple jump pit, high jump bed, throwing cage and two javelin approach throwing areas.
Fixtures
The Marlborough College Athletics Club is a host venue for multiple invitational events across the Summer Term, as well as the Wiltshire multi-events competition and the Kennet area trials as a prerequisite to the Wiltshire Schools’ County Championships. The club also competes annually in the prestigious Butler Shield (hosted by Harrow), Copenhagen Shield (hosted by Wellington College) and the Lord Burghley Trophy (hosted by Eton College).
Most years, around 20–30 athletes progress to the Individual Wiltshire County Championships, with between five and ten going to the South West Championships held in Exeter. Outstanding individuals will make it to the English Schools’ Athletics Association Championships at the end of term, which in recent years has even been live streamed.
The hugely anticipated internal Babcock (Remove) and House Athletics Championships (Shell, Remove and Lower Sixth) are held at the end of the Summer Term, with the latter closing the entire College academic year.
Collaborations and Coaches
The College Common Room offers a range of coaching support, including extensive use of the strength and conditioning programme and facilities for sprint-specific drills. This is significantly supported by external coaching staff, including Julie Alexander, Deborah Bray and Keith Donkin. Julie is a Team Bath university coach who specialises in multi-events, long and triple jump, and the hurdles. Deborah is a shot put, discus and high jump specialist. Keith, who works in the College gym, is a middle- and long-distance specialist.