Story by Edina Tan/Red Sports. Photos by Chua Kai Yun/Red Sports.

Athletes from Hwa Chong Institution completing the last lap of their 1500m walk event. Brandon Loh (#437, right) emerged first in this event, while Zeen Chia (#455) and Timothy Lim (#436) finished 2nd and 3rd respectively. (Photo © Chua Kai Yun/Red Sports)

Athletes from Hwa Chong Institution completing the last lap of their 1500m walk event. Brandon Loh (#437, right) emerged first, while Zeen Chia (#455) and Timothy Lim (#436) finished 2nd and 3rd respectively. (Photo 1 © Chua Kai Yun/Red Sports)

Bishan Stadium, Monday, April 18, 2016 – Brandon Loh of Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) clinched the title for the C Division Boys 1500m walk with a timing of 8 minutes 15.63 seconds at the 57th National Schools Track and Field Championships.

Zeen Chia and Timothy Lim completed the podium for HCI, coming in second and third in 08:16.43 and 08:16.55 respectively.

The C Division 1500m walk record is 07:46.58, which was set two years ago by HCI senior Sia Jun Wei.

The HCI sweep allowed them to increase their lead considerably over Raffles Institution (RI) in the divisional title tace. HCI now have a 17-point lead.

The race started off with all the walkers in a pack, which was maintained for the next 200 metres. The pack only started dispersing in the second round.

A front pack consisting of Lim Yu Xin of RI, Brandon and Zeen was established. Brandon and Zeen overtook Yu Xin who was leading, and the trio led for most of the second round.

Timothy later overtook Yu Xin, and together with his HCI teammates, widened the gap with the fourth runner, a gap which they maintained for the rest of the race.

The final 100 metres saw the HCI trio neck and neck, and they ultimately finished the race within one second of one another to claim a podium sweep for HCI.

When asked about the race, Brandon said, “The race pace was comfortable, and I expected this win. We (referring to Zeen and Timothy) wanted a nice finish, and are happy to finish together.”

He added, “All of us would like to thank our parents and coach for our performance.”

C Div 1500m Walk (Boys) Results (Top 10)
1st Loh Zhi Xuan, Brandon (#437, HCI) – 08:15.63
2nd Zeen Chia (#455, HCI) – 08:16.43
3rd Lim Ze En, Timothy (#436, HCI) – 08:16.55
4th Lim Yu Xin (#214, RI) – 08:32.64
5th Chan Yen Chiok, Zachary (#201, RI) – 08:35.18
6th James Chin Dow Ching (#70, Maris Stella High) – 08:36.12
7th Gerald Tay Hao Wen (#88, North Vista) – 08:45.99
8th Chang J J Mervin (#86, North Vista) – 09:22.52
9th Timothy Tan (#76, Maris Stella High) – 09:25.21
10th Hoon Chi Peng Shaun (#299, Dunman High) – 09:39.04

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