They won the event the first time they qualified for it, in 2002, and again two years later.
‘This time we do have a few athletes missing,’ club coach Andrew Winnie said, ‘but we’ll get by.
Dale Garland and Nathan Stevens are injured and we are without Gemma Tingay and Jamie Stevenson, but we have some good athletes with us.
We wouldn’t be going unless I thought we had a very good chance of winning.
‘The real struggle for us has been to find the finances necessary to get us to Bedford.
‘The travelling athletes have had to pay more than £200 just to get off the Island – that’s without coach and accommodation costs.
The Garenne Group sponsored us for the first four meets of the season, but since then we’ve had to raise the money ourselves.
We have held car-wash days to raise funds but it’s just a drop in the ocean really, and CI athletics is going to suffer because the athletes just cannot afford to spend that much money.
‘This has been a hard season for us, not only in terms of the competition itself, but also because the team have also had to battle to secure enough funding to be able to travel.’ Winnie is still hoping that a sponsor will come on board, and anyone who can help is asked to contact him on 07797 735828.
The CIAC is supported by ESC.
CI squad: Kylie Robilliard (100m, 100m hurdles, 4x100m); Laura Arblaster (200m, 4x100m, 4x400m); Stephanie Le Cornu (400m; 4x100m, 4x400m, PV); Helen Watts (800m, 4x400m); Louise Perrio (1500m, 3000m); Michelle Ryan (Hammer); Lauren Thèrin (Discus, Shot); Rebecca Slater (Javelin); Sophie Twinam (HJ, 4x400m); Kimberley Gleeson (LJ, TJ, 4x100m); Stephen Prosser (100m, 4×100); William Perchard (200m, 4x100m, 4x400m); Tom Druce (400m, 800m, 4x100m, 4x400m); Lee Merrien (1500m); Alan Rowe (5,000m); Lee Garland (3000m s/c); Steve Dawes (10,000m); Peter Irving (400 hurdles, 4 x 100m; 4x400m ); Ben Kerr (110 hurdles, PV, LJ, TJ,); David Felton (hammer, discus, shot); Jason Fox (HJ).
