C Div 1,500m (Boys): Hu Hua Xin of HCI wins gold in 4:39.05

By Tay Jun Wen/Red Sports

Hu Hua Xin (422, left) outsprints Isaac Tan (#103) of ACS(I) to win the C Div 1,500m gold in 4:39.05. Isaac finished just 0.44s behind while Louis Shia of North Vista was third in 4:40.91. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Choa Chu Kang Sports Complex, Monday, April 15, 2013 — Hu Hua Xin of Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) edged out Isaac Tan of Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) by 0.44 seconds to earn the C Division 1,500 metres gold at the 54th National Schools Track and Field Championships. Hua Xin stopped the clock at 4 minutes 39.05 seconds while Isaac finished in 4:39.49.

Hua Xin himself was edged out for gold in the C Division 3,000m final by Ierhan Muhd Rushan of Singapore Sports School.

In third place was Louis Shia of North Vista Secondary in a time of 4:40.91.

The C Division 1,500m record is 4:21.37 and was set by Kannan Poobalan, then of Victoria School, in 1997.

The race started with Gideon Phong, also of ACS(I), taking an early lead with Isaac and Ierhan of Sports School. Louis was just behind them.

As the runners went into their final lap, Ierhan, who was seen clutching his stomach in some discomfort, started to fall back. Gideon and Isaac maintained a slight lead but as the athletes went around the final bend, Hua Xin sped up and started chasing down Isaac. With about 10 metres left, Hua Xin was able to stay ahead and eventually win first place.

As for Louis, he too picked up his pace at the end to overtake Gideon to secure himself a place on the podium.

Louis said: “It was a race that brought back confidence for me. I came in eighth in 3,000m event. I could work on my final 100 metres where I needed to catch up with people.”

Isaac was surprised with this result. He said: “I did not expect to be second. My running pace could be improved on. All of us tried our best.”

Hua Xin started off his race with an unsteady mindset. “Mentally, I was a little afraid. But this result has made me slightly more confident. All of us did well and tried our best.”

C Division Boys 1,500m Results
1st Hu Hua Xin (Hwa Chong Institution, #422) — 04:39.05
2nd Isaac Tan Wei Long (Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), #103) — 04:39.49
3rd Louis Shia Wei Jie (North Vista Secondary, #47) — 04:40.91
4th Gideon Phong Wei Sheng (Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), #99) — 04:43.03
5th James Mah Kim Chuan (Hwa Chong Institution, #424) — 04:48.85
6th Aaron Chan Siang Joo (Raffles Institution, #195) — 04:49.17
7th Brandon Quek (Commonwealth Secondary, #398) — 04:49.22
8th Ierhan Muhd Raushan (Singapore Sports School, #70) — 04:50.50
9th Aaron Shane Tan Wen (Singapore Sports School, #62) — 04:56.09
10th Ayden Mohan (St. Joseph’s Institution, #246) — 04:56.17
11th Benjamin Yap (Junyuan Secondary, #304) — 05:02.01
12th Muhammad Zatri B Abdul Karim (Commonwealth Secondary, #401) — 05:02.93
13th Seah Kia Luck (Hwa Chong Institution, #441) — 05:04.19
14th Isaiah Boh Yu-Teng (Catholic High School, #135) — 05:08.93
15th Habib Nur S/O Basheer (Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), #100) — 05:15.51
16th Lucas Cheng Jia Rui (Chung Cheng High (Main), #288) — 05:22.46