FEMI Akinbobola delivered a superb display of sprinting to celebrate the end of his season at the Yate Sprints & Hurdles meeting.

The 18-year-old Team Bath AC sprinter from Chippenham smashed his personal bests for both the 100m and 200m as he broke 11 seconds and 22 seconds respectively for the first time in his young career.

Akinbobola finished third in the rarely-run 100m, clocking 10.84secs, and then buoyed with that success scorched to victory in the 200m in a scintillating time of 21.61secs, to put him top of the South West Rankings.

“It was a great day and to be fair came as a big shock,” said Akinbobola.

“I don’t run the 100m very often as I don’t have the physique or the start for it, so to run 10.84secs really shocked me. But it really put me in a really good mood for the 200m and I really attacked it.

“When it was announced I had won in 21.61secs I literally collapsed to the ground, I just could not believe it.”

For record purposes, Akinbobola’s times will have an asterisk alongside as both personal bests were assisted by a following wind of 2.5metres per second, above the legal limit of 2.0mps.

Nonetheless, being only just over the limit shouldn’t detract in any way from the enormity of Akinbobola’s success having gone into the meeting with legal PBs of 11.2secs (2018) and 22.32secs, which he set when winning the South West Inter Counties title last year.

“Yes, the times were wind-assisted but I now reckon I can do that again without the wind,” added Akinbobola.

“Sunday has given me a lot of confidence and I reckon I am in shape to run 47 seconds for 400m now. I still see myself as primarily a 400m man,” he added.

Coincidentally, Akinbobola set his 400m PB of 48.97secs – his first sub 49 seconds clocking – on the same Yate track a few weeks ago so it is clearly a venue that suits him.

It suited quite a few other Wiltshire athletes, too, as they thrived in the ideal sprinting conditions.

Bradford on Avon’s British junior international multi-eventer Jenna Blundell also showed impressive sprinting speed as she clocked a PB of 12.20secs, shaving 0.02secs off her 2019 mark.

Blundell, who recently finished sixth in the Muller British Championships, also won the 100m hurdles in 13.9secs, equalling the time she ran at the nationals in Manchester.

Sheldon School student Joe Carter from Calne was another sprinter to impress as for the second time in a week he smashed his PB for the 200m.

The previous weekend at Yeovil he dipped under 23 seconds for the first time with 22.90secs, but on Sunday he took another chunk off that with a scintillating 22.55secs to lift him to top spot in the South West Rankings for under 17 men.

“That was a great result for Joe,” said his coach Julie Alexander.

“His 11.11secs for the 100m was also pretty special and I think he is capable of going under 11 seconds if the conditions are good in Nuneaton next weekend.”

Chippenham’s Jake Cover notched up PBs in the 100m (11.58secs), his first time under 12 seconds and in the 110m hurdles (14.99secs) and Joel Mattacks from Southwick clocked a PB of 11.82secs for the 100m and just missed his 200m best with 24.67secs.

Hilperton multi eventer Rory Howorth was also in action clocking 11.72secs in the 100m and 16.06secs behind Cover in the 110m hurdles, the latter marked a legal PB.