The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Kemnay’s Still goes second on all-time Scots pentathlon list
Aberdeenshire athlete Alix Still produced the best performance of her career so far when competing in the women’s pentathlon at the US Atlantic Conference indoor championships in Clemson, South Carolina.
The 20-year-old, from Kemnay, a student at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, scored a lifetime best score of 3,974 points to pick up the bronze medal behind Wake Forest student Anna Bush (4,121) and Notre Dame’s Jadon O’Brien (4,086).
Still’s points tally elevates her from 11th to second position on the Scottish alltime best performers list behind Aileen Wilson (Woodford Green), who set the national indoor record of 4,096 19 years ago.
She achieved personal best performances in the 60m hurdles (8.70secs), shot put (10.97m) and 800m (2min 19.4secs) – and was just 1cm outside her best in the high jump (1.70m), while her long jump (5.59m) was a little short of the 5.73m she cleared earlier in the season.
Still said: “This was definitely a huge accomplishment for me, as it’s the highest level I have ever competed at.
“It was a very special moment, as I feel as though I am now beginning to prove myself and there is so much more to come.
“However, my long jump really let me down. I tried to play it safe on my first jump, just so that I’d get a mark down for points.
“However, my next couple of jumps didn’t go as planned as I fouled.
“This set me back slightly as I was on the road to scoring 4,000 points, but to come third at the ACC conference is a huge achievement as it is one of the most competitive of all 32 conferences in the US.”
Still hopes she’ll get one more opportunity to crack the Scottish record before the indoor season comes to a close.
She said: “There is one more step before my indoor season ends.
“The last indoor competition is the National Collegiate Athletic Association championships, which is when all of the conferences in America come together and the top 16 athletes across the country qualify and compete against each other.
“I am currently sitting 14th in America this year.
“However, there is one conference that has not competed yet so I have to wait until they are finished to see if I have qualified or not. The NCAA championships are taking place in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on March 11-13.
“I am confident I am capable of doing well and coming back even stronger, but it’s now a waiting game to see if I qualify.
“When one of my coaches told me I was second best of all time in Scotland for the indoor pentathlon I was very happy.
“It makes me more eager to qualify for the NCAA championships and get an even better score.”