Latest news with #Attwell
NZ Herald
07-08-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Athletics Insight: Former Whanganui athlete Max Attwell sets decathlon PB in Poland
Jones has an exciting academic and athletic future and we wish him well. Before embarking on my northern hemisphere travels, I had considered returning home via Christchurch for last weekend's South China Airways Athletics New Zealand Cross Country Championships. I had to be content to watch highlights from the livestream. Hannah Gapes, back home from her US university where she had finished fourth in the 2024 NCAA cross country, was the runaway winner of the women's race in her first 10km cross country. As the winner, she received a golden ticket to the World Cross Country Championships next January in Florida. Connor Melton won his ticket, retaining his senior men's title. It was good to see Manawatū/Whanganui success from Justin Cunningham in the under-18s. Track runner Cunningham from Palmerston North, who impressed by taking a bronze medal in the under-18 1500m in March, travelled south hoping for a top 10 finish. He remained around 10th for most of the 8km race. The pace at the front was conservative as leading runners watched each other, leaving the inexperienced Cunningham running comfortably close to the leading group. In the final stages, Cunningham moved to the front and outsprinted his opposition to a surprised and worthy victory – even the livestream commentators were taken by surprise, searching through the start list to confirm his identity. Whanganui's Sally Gibbs was sixth across the line in the combined masters grade and was a convincing winner in the 60-64 grade, adding another title to her impressive record. Paula Conder was 43rd and fifth in her grade. They combined with Robert Conder and Russell Spencer for Whanganui in the mixed relay later in the day in a team that finished 11th. In my final days in Europe while travelling, I was able to follow former Whanganui athlete Max Attwell's successful decathlon in Poland. Thanks to coach Terry Lomax, who was with Attwell in Poland, I was added to the WhatsApp group. Unlike others from New Zealand in the group, I was receiving up-to-date information as it happened in the same time zone. Attwell, 28, left Whanganui Collegiate in 2014. He took up athletics in Year 12 after three years in rowing. I remember him asking me what event he should take up and I replied that I thought he should try decathlon – one of my better pieces of advice. My other good piece of advice was recommending Terry Lomax as a coach when he went to start his engineering degree at Canterbury University. Attwell has won 24 New Zealand medals since leaving school, including seven gold medals, six of which have been in decathlon. Attwell has also won two Oceania gold medals in decathlon and in 2019 finished fourth in the World University Games decathlon. In Poland, Attwell set a personal best of 7822 points, surpassing his previous of 7773 points set in 2023. In reaching this total (fifth all-time New Zealand performance), Attwell set personal bests in 110m hurdles (15.25s), javelin (54.75m), 100m metres (11.04s), and 400m (47.50s). It is no wonder that among his Athletics New Zealand medals there have been relay medals for Canterbury. Attwell has overcome serious injury and is an outstanding example of where perseverance, dedication and determination can take an athlete. Eleven years out of school, Attwell is an outstanding role model. I was saddened on my return to read of the death of Allan Cherry. Allan, from Taihape, was a former athlete and coach, and a West Coast North Island selector in the 1970s. He was best known as a leading official and was ever-present at major meetings throughout New Zealand. He was a key official for many years at all the major events at Cooks Gardens. He was liked and respected by all athletes and always travelled with club and centre teams. His memorial service will be held in Taihape today.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Yahoo
Man, 37, jailed for ‘vicious and persistent' attack on police officer
A 37-year-old man who 'launched a vicious and persistent attack' on a police officer just days before Christmas has been jailed for six years and four months. Richard Nodwell of Oakfield, Cwmbran, repeatedly punched and kicked police constable Nathan Attwell in the Welsh town on December 20 2023, resulting in a fractured cheekbone and eye socket. Cardiff Crown Court heard on Tuesday that he then went on to spit at one officer and bit the boot of another, with nine people needed to arrest him. Mr Attwell, who was on his own, approached Nodwell while responding to a 999 call from the defendant's daughter, who said he was trying to get into her house. Gareth James, speaking on behalf of the prosecution, said call handlers could hear sounds of screaming. 'The officer found the defendant near to Our Lady of Angels Church in Cwmbran,' he said. 'The defendant was immediately confrontational and aggressive with the officer, he was visibly angry, shouting in officer's face and not at all cooperative as Mr Attwell tried to speak to him in an effort to deescalate the situation.' As Mr Attwell asked Nodwell to show him his hands, concerned he may be concealing a weapon, 'he launched a vicious and persistent attack' on the officer, punching him multiple times to the face before pushing him to the ground. He continued the assault, using both fists to hit the officer in the face and head before kicking him and running away. In body-worn footage shown to the court, Mr Attwell could be seen struggling to his feet and propping himself up, with blood pouring down the wall. Mr Attwell suffered a fractured cheekbone, fractured eye socket, fractured nose, a laceration to the back of the head and a cut to the left eye which required stitches. When other officers arrived to arrest Nodwell, he continued to be aggressive, assaulting one officer by spitting on his hand and biting another's boot on the lower shin. The judge said he counted 'eight or nine' officers being needed to bring the defendant to the ground. A hood was put over Nodwell's face to stop him spitting, and he became increasingly irritated, claiming to have asthma and demanding they 'get off my face now' because it was 'harassment'. He said: 'I'm going to bash you all up.' Mr James said Nodwell had previous convictions for assaulting police officers. Nodwell, who pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent and two counts of assault of an emergency worker, was given an extended sentence by the judge, with a six-year and four-month prison sentence and a further three years on licence. His Honour Judge Hywel James said: 'I have seen the bodyworn footage of (Mr Attwell's) actions, which I assess as being entirely appropriate. 'He showed considerable courtesy and patience in the manner he dealt with you. 'Your response was to, without warning, punch PC Attwell to his face with considerable force.' The judge said he counted 12 to 13 punches and one kick to the head 'with force'. 'He was, in my assessment, no threat to you at any time. He was in an extremely vulnerable position lying on the ground when you chose to kick him.' Ryan Randall, senior prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service said in a statement: 'This is one of the most shocking attacks on a police officer I have seen. 'Nodwell carried out this sickening act of violence on a uniformed officer conducting his lawful duties, showing a complete disregard for his authority. 'Any assault or abuse of an emergency worker is viewed extremely seriously by the CPS. 'Emergency workers are there to help the public and should be able to do so safely and without fear. '
The Independent
01-04-2025
- The Independent
Man, 37, jailed for ‘vicious and persistent' attack on police officer
A 37-year-old man who 'launched a vicious and persistent attack' on a police officer just days before Christmas has been jailed for six years and four months. Richard Nodwell of Oakfield, Cwmbran, repeatedly punched and kicked police constable Nathan Attwell in the Welsh town on December 20 2023, resulting in a fractured cheekbone and eye socket. Cardiff Crown Court heard on Tuesday that he then went on to spit at one officer and bit the boot of another, with nine people needed to arrest him. Mr Attwell, who was on his own, approached Nodwell while responding to a 999 call from the defendant's daughter, who said he was trying to get into her house. Gareth James, speaking on behalf of the prosecution, said call handlers could hear sounds of screaming. 'The officer found the defendant near to Our Lady of Angels Church in Cwmbran,' he said. 'The defendant was immediately confrontational and aggressive with the officer, he was visibly angry, shouting in officer's face and not at all cooperative as Mr Attwell tried to speak to him in an effort to deescalate the situation.' As Mr Attwell asked Nodwell to show him his hands, concerned he may be concealing a weapon, 'he launched a vicious and persistent attack' on the officer, punching him multiple times to the face before pushing him to the ground. He continued the assault, using both fists to hit the officer in the face and head before kicking him and running away. In body-worn footage shown to the court, Mr Attwell could be seen struggling to his feet and propping himself up, with blood pouring down the wall. Mr Attwell suffered a fractured cheekbone, fractured eye socket, fractured nose, a laceration to the back of the head and a cut to the left eye which required stitches. When other officers arrived to arrest Nodwell, he continued to be aggressive, assaulting one officer by spitting on his hand and biting another's boot on the lower shin. The judge said he counted 'eight or nine' officers being needed to bring the defendant to the ground. A hood was put over Nodwell's face to stop him spitting, and he became increasingly irritated, claiming to have asthma and demanding they 'get off my face now' because it was 'harassment'. He said: 'I'm going to bash you all up.' Mr James said Nodwell had previous convictions for assaulting police officers. Nodwell, who pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent and two counts of assault of an emergency worker, was given an extended sentence by the judge, with a six-year and four-month prison sentence and a further three years on licence. His Honour Judge Hywel James said: 'I have seen the bodyworn footage of (Mr Attwell's) actions, which I assess as being entirely appropriate. 'He showed considerable courtesy and patience in the manner he dealt with you. 'Your response was to, without warning, punch PC Attwell to his face with considerable force.' The judge said he counted 12 to 13 punches and one kick to the head 'with force'. 'He was, in my assessment, no threat to you at any time. He was in an extremely vulnerable position lying on the ground when you chose to kick him.' Ryan Randall, senior prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service said in a statement: 'This is one of the most shocking attacks on a police officer I have seen. 'Nodwell carried out this sickening act of violence on a uniformed officer conducting his lawful duties, showing a complete disregard for his authority. 'Any assault or abuse of an emergency worker is viewed extremely seriously by the CPS. 'Emergency workers are there to help the public and should be able to do so safely and without fear. '
New York Times
10-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Nottingham Forest lose £750k fine appeal for ‘irresponsible' Stuart Attwell social media post
The Football Association (FA) has upheld a £750,000 fine for Nottingham Forest following a social media post which questioned the integrity of official Stuart Attwell after the side's Premier League loss at Everton in April 2024. In October, an independent regulatory commission imposed the fine after it determined that the club's post was 'ill-chosen and irresponsible' and constituted improper conduct, as it implied actual bias against video assistant referee (VAR) Attwell. Advertisement The commission had also highlighted Forest's lack of 'genuine apology' and 'genuine remorse' for the post, which they ordered be removed from their social media platforms, while the club were also warned by the panel over their conduct. The FA had initially sought a fine in excess of £1million over what they said was the club's 'egregious, direct and public attack'. Forest's appeal in relation to both liability and sanction against was dismissed by the Appeal Board. Forest issued the highly critical post on social media around five minutes after full-time of their Premier League defeat at Goodison Park, which left the club one point above the relegation zone at the time. The club argued they had wanted to 'start a debate about the potential difficulty' of the game's VAR official Attwell, who they alleged supported the club's relegation rival Luton Town. Forest posted that Attwell's appointment brought the 'potential for unconscious or perceived/apparent bias was an issue that needed to be addressed in the wider interests of the game'. GO DEEPER Nottingham Forest's furious tweet: What happened and why did they post it? Forest said they had 'warned' the Professional Game Match Officials Board (PGMOL) that 'the VAR is a Luton fan but they didn't change him. 'Three extremely poor decisions — three penalties not given — which we simply cannot accept,' the club said on their social media account, in a post that was subsequently deleted following instruction from the FA. 'Our patience has been tested multiple times.' The FA noted how the initial, post-game tweet was viewed nearly 40 million times in less than 24 hours from its publication. Forest had been left aggrieved after referee Anthony Taylor failed to award three penalties during their 2-0 loss to Everton, and VAR Attwell opted not to overrule the decisions. The commission had accepted the game was 'fraught with controversy' while former referee Howard Webb later said that in the opinion of PGMOL, the decision to refuse the third penalty was a mistake and that a penalty should have been awarded and/or the VAR should have intervened to advise to that effect. However, the Appeal Board said that the event was 'wholly unprecedented' and upheld the original verdict on the club, with costs to be paid by March 12. GO DEEPER Nottingham Forest, Stuart Attwell's Luton link and a melodrama played out on social media (Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Forest lose appeal against £750,000 fine
Nottingham Forest have lost their appeal against a £750,000 fine for a social media post criticising video assistant referee Stuart Attwell. They were fined by the Football Association in October for an "attack on the integrity of a match official on an unparalleled scale". Forest complained on X about three penalty decisions that went against them during a 2-0 Premier League defeat at Everton on 21 April 2024. Forest's post said they had "warned" referees' body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) that Attwell, who was the VAR for the match, was a fan of relegation rivals Luton, but that "they did not change him", adding: "Our patience has been tested multiple times." In October Forest said the fine was "disproportionate", but on Monday the FA said an appeal board had upheld the sanction. "In our view, a heavy penalty was entirely merited for this very serious offence," the board said in its written reasons. "An aggravating feature of the offence was that the tweet was viewed by millions of people. In short, it went 'viral'. This was predictable and no doubt intended. "It was also predictable that it would cause great distress to the match officials and their families." Defeat by Everton left Forest one point ahead of Luton, although they ended the season in 17th - six points clear of the relegation zone. Luton were relegated. Forest are third in the table with 10 matches of this season remaining. Latest Nottingham Forest news, analysis and fan views Get Nottingham Forest news sent straight to your phone
