Great South Run Archives | Fast Running https://fastrunning.com/all-about/great-south-run Running news, opinion, races & training tips Sun, 20 Oct 2019 17:38:10 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.1 McColgan dominates GSR & England Team compete in Toronto – weekend roundup http://fastrunning.com/running-athletics-news/mccolgan-donminates-gsr-england-team-compete-in-toronto-weekend-roundup/27577 Sun, 20 Oct 2019 17:30:26 +0000 https://fastrunning.com/?p=27577 After a wet and rainy week, the weekend saw some impressive performances both on the road and off. Down in Portsmouth, the weekend was kickstarted with the Great South 5k Run. After a second-place finish last year, Sonja Vernikov returned with a title to claim. Vernikov did just that and stormed through the line to […]

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]]> After a wet and rainy week, the weekend saw some impressive performances both on the road and off.

Down in Portsmouth, the weekend was kickstarted with the Great South 5k Run. After a second-place finish last year, Sonja Vernikov returned with a title to claim. Vernikov did just that and stormed through the line to first place in a time of 17:36.

Following a tough battle with injury since the start of the year, Portsmouth’s own Rhiannon Dunlop made a fighting return to the road and proved her strength is back. Dunlop was second lady to the cross the line, taking home a shiny new 18 second road 5k PB of 17:41.

Completing the women’s podium was V50 athlete, Lucy Elliott of Winchester. In what was Elliott’s first 5k on the road since 2007, she ran an impressive 18:09 which puts her at the top of the V50 5k road rankings for 2019 so far!!

The men’s race along the Portsmouth promenade was just as speedy. Giving him the chance to spin his legs out ahead of next weekend’s Frankfurt Marathon, Paul Navesey ran himself to a first-place finish. Navesey clocked 14:56, proving speed is definitely not an issue for the marathon runner.

Just 10 seconds behind in 15:06 was James Heneghan. The U23 athlete ran an incredible 54 second road PB for second place. In third position was Portsmouth’s U20 runner, Sam Charig. In yet another PB time, Charig ran a 63 second lifetime best of 15:21.

McColgan dominates Great South Run

The main event took place on Sunday. The Simplyhealth Great South Run saw an abundance of strong, fast athletes take to Portsmouth’s roads over the 10-mile distance. Finishing off her season on a high, after a 10th place finish at the IAAF World Championships, Eilish McColgan dominated the women’s race.

The conditions couldn’t have been more different to those in Doha with a chilly start to the morning. Eilish took on the 10-mile challenge for the second time and defended her title from last year. McColgan ran a gutsy race, pushing the pace on from the get go, distancing herself from her opponents straight away.

After sustaining an impressive lead throughout, she smashed her mother previous best, clocking a Scottish record of 51:36 and putting herself second on the British all-time list behind Paula Radcliffe.

After a fight to the finish for second-place, it was Swansea athlete, Verity Ockenden, that secured the silver medal as she pushed away from Jenny Nesbitt in the final 200m. In what has been a successful year for Ockenden, she clocked a time of 55:15. In her 10-mile debut, the 2019 Inter Counties Cross Country champion, Jenny Nesbitt, crossed the finish line just behind Ockenden in 55:18. A very impressive debut performance!

 

Scott beats a high quality men’s field

The men’s race was just as exciting. Whilst there was quite a pack in the early miles, it was Mark Scott who pushed away to become the 2019 Great South Run champion. Scott took the title from the 3-time winner, Chris Thompson, in a time of 46:57 with a clear lead.

After what can only be described as a breakthrough year for Ben Connor, he continued to prove his strength over the 10-mile race. Connor stormed his way to a second-place finish in 47:16. Emile Cairess gave one of the performances of the day, achieving an U23 British 10-mile record for third position. Cairess, who has been going from strength to strength crossed the line with 47:32 on the clock! Very impressive!

England team take on Toronto

Across the seas, was the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. Representing Team England was Nick Earl for the men, Johanna O’Regan and Katie Drew for the women. Also competing was Welsh athlete, Josh Griffiths.

At the halfway mark, it was Wales’ Griffiths who was leading for the British men in 13th place, followed by Earl in 18th. Griffiths did well to hold onto his position and finished just 1 minute outside of his PB in 2:15:20! Earl too held onto his 18th position and crossed the line in 2:18:03.

In the women’s race, O’Regan gave a strong performance doing England proud. The Riverside athlete finished 4th in her age category and an impressive 22nd woman overall in a time of 2:45:43 and Kate Drew finished in 26th in 2:49:31.

England Team. Credit: Andy Hobdell

Davis continues her stunning form

Around the 4-lap course in Battersea park, the Self-transcendence Golden Leaf 10k took place. The men’s title went to Serpentine’s Chris Wright, in 31:12, a 21 second seasons best. Just behind Wright in the silver medal position was Paul Piper of West4Harriers. Piper had an astonishing race and ran himself to a 33 second life time best! Completing the men’s top 3, with a time of 32:16 was Paul Prothero.

Stealing the show in the women’s race was Clapham Chasers’ Steph Davis. After a phenomenal summer season clocking 33:07 at the Night of 10,000 PB’s, Davis’ strong form continues after a win at last weeks Oxford Half Marathon.

The Clapham athlete crossed the line in 33:21, 22 seconds faster than her previous best time. Davis told us, “Chinmoy races are great events, and I was delighted to run a PB as part of my marathon build. Also enjoyed winning a pineapple, as it’s my coaches favourite fruit!”.

Quick times in Cambridge

Also over the 10k distance was the Cambridge Town & Gown 10k. The run takes its competitors along a scenic route through many of Cambridge’s historic landmarks. However for our leading runner’s, the sheer speed at which the ran meant there was little time to take in the sights.

It was Cambridge & Coleridge AC who achieved mass domination across the board. After just missing out on breaking the 30-minute barrier, C&C’s Joseph Smith front man ran his way to this year’s gold medal in 30:01. A devastatingly close, but extremely impressive time which was a 1 minute 40 second PB for Smith.

Adding to the success of Cambridge & Coleridge was Ben Jones, who ran himself to an impressive 30 second lifetime best, clearly breaking the 32-minute barrier in 31:40. Concluding the men’s top three was Chris Darling in 32:01, another incredibly close performance.

In the women’s race, speedy times and lifetime bests were also in abundance. It was Georgina Schwiening of Cambridge Runners who secured first place and a 15 second personal best in 34:06, improving on her time from the Vitality 10,000 earlier in the year. The second female athlete was Emma Hodson of Cambridge University in 36:03, another PB by over a minute! The final medal went to High Harriers AC’s Rachel Doherty in 37:02.

In a weekend filled with 10k’s, The Hove Prom 10k took place. It was Matt Bradford of Lewes who took home the men’s title with the overall win in a time of 32:38. Only 4 seconds behind Bradford in second place was James Skinner. Skinner stormed across the line in 32:42, a 6 second lifetime best. Rounding up the men’s podium, was Richard Clayton in 33:12. A strong run from all three men.

It was Arena 80 AC that dominated the women’s race with the top two positions being secured by their athletes. Caroline Hoyte ran herself to a clear gold medal position finish in 36:15. Hoyte currently stands second on the 2019 V45 10k rankings for 2019 so far with a time of 35:30 behind Jo Pavey. Hoyte was followed by clubmate Tara Shanahan in 37:51. Shanahan was just 5 seconds of her best time for 2019. Completing the medal positions was Elspeth Turner of Horsham Blue Star Harriers in 38:17.

At the City of Preston 10k there were some speedy winning times. Mohammad Abu-Rezeq of Altrincham & District AC secured himself the men’s title in a rapid time of 30:59 in his 6th road 10k of the year. The champion of the women’s race in 35:49 was Kirsty Longley in her 8th road 10k of the year!!

Brits on the streets of Amsterdam

Over at the TCS Amsterdam Marathon Ross Skelton at a fine run to finish 17th in 2:19:03. Robert Wilson ran 2:27:08 and Nathan Harrison was the third Brit across the line in 2:28:33.

Hannah Oldroyd had a fantastic run clocking a negative split on her way to 2:44:53 to improve her PB of 2:45:39 set in London this year. Hannah’s performance saw her finish 11th female overall. Perhaps the performance of the day was Victoria Park Harrier Mary Hammond who destroyed her previous PB of 3:03 to run 2:49:25 to finish 15th. In what appears to be her first full year of running Hammond is clearly a huge talent. Rachel Davies was the third British female n a time of 3:00:39.

In the Amsterdam Half Marathon five of the top 10 were British or Irish athletes. Sean Renfer was the finished 5th in 69:34 just ahead of 6th placed Jonathan Johnson who ran 69:52. Luke Grenfell-Shaw was 7th in a time of 70:27. Claire Hughes was the first British female in 84:45 narrowly ahead of Emily Cousens in 84:55 with Susie Starr finishing in 85:02.

Wycombe and Wimbledon win the Southern XC Relays

Through the mud and over the hills, the South of England Cross-Country Relays took place at Wormwood Scrubs. For the second year in a row, it was Wycombe Phoenix Harriers that took home the win. The winning trio consisted of Mel Wilkins, Alexandra Cook, and Zoe Doyle, with Mel Wilkins running the fastest leg of the day followed by Zoe Doyle.

In the men’s race, it was Hercules Wimbledon that trudged through the mud and water to a first-place finish. The 4-man strong team was led by Will Woodcock followed by Charlie Eastaugh, Finn Johnson, and Ross Franks. It was Alexander Lepêtre of Highgate Harriers that took the fastest leg, followed by Wimbledon’s Ross Franks.

Marathons and Half Marathons across the UK

Over the slightly longer distance this weekend, was the Chiswick Half Marathon. The race ventures through one of West London’s most scenic areas in what is a flat, but challenging course. Plenty of runners proved they were up to the challenge. It was the men’s title, in a time of 1:10:54, that went to Serpentine’s Tony Payne. The runner-up was Bradley Smith in 1:13:36 ahead of third place finisher, Nigel Rackham, in 1:16:59.

Datchet’s Jill Collett ran a strong race to achieve a first-place finish. Collett stopped the clock on 1:22:00 as she ran across the finish line. Following Collett with a time of 1:23:10, was Harriet Freeman of London City AC before another one of Serpentine’s athletes, Annie Emmerson in 1:24:28.

On one of a few marathons of the weekend, the Abingdon Marathon marked the 38th year since its inception. Serpentine’s Jonathon Poole came home in first place in his first marathon of the year, therefore guaranteeing himself a best time for 2019. Poole clocked 2:29:52, just under an impressive 6 minutes ahead of second place. The silver medal went to Sean Edwards of Lytchett Manor Striders in 2:35;46, shortly followed by the Army AA Marathon champion, Gareth Crossley, in 2:39:45.

In her marathon debut, Emma Navesey appeared to be no novice at the 26.2-mile distance. Navesey lead in her brother’s (Paul Navesey) footsteps, proving marathon success runs in the family, and earning herself a gold medal in 2:57:07! Shortly behind the Haywards Heath Harriers athlete was Lisa Rooney of Collingwood AC in 2:58:27. Rounding off the women’s podium was Becky Tovey in a 13-minute personal best of 3:03:16. An impressive performance heading into the final few months of the year.

Impressive performances in Yorkshire

At the Asda Foundation Yorkshire Marathon, there were plenty of fast marathon times clocked, alongside representation from one of Fast Running’s own. The first female finisher was Charlene Jacobs-Conradie with a time of 2:46:50, a cracking 6 minutes faster than her previous best time! Following on from Jacobs-Conradie was Sarah Hill with yet another PB of the weekend in 2:52:21. Third place was obtained by Kate Owens with a superb time of 2:55:14. Fast Running’s Gill Bland was among these runners, giving a strong performance and clocking 2:56:07. Time for Gill to rest up now ahead of Valencia!!

The first male to cross the line at the Yorkshire Marathon was Mark Buckingham in 2hrs 21mins and 42 secs, followed by Daniel Kestrel in 2:24:47, dipping just 8 seconds under his personal best. Richard McDowell completed the men’s podium with a solid 2hrs and 25mins.

In the 10-mile event Matt Kitching ran through the line in first place in a time of 53:10 and Sharon Barlow won the women’s race in 58:56.

In the Chelmsford Marathon it was Alex Manton who took the winner’s title, crossing the line in 2:39:02. The women’s winner, with an impressive 10-minute lead, was Emma Prideaux in 2:53:01. Prideaux proved her strong form by running herself to a 3-mintue personal best.

At the Chesterfield Half Marathon Richard Start secured first place with a time of 71:52 and Susan Lewis ran herself to the top of the women’s podium in 84:29.

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]]> Chris Thompson, Eilish McColgan and Team England impress – weekend round-up http://fastrunning.com/events-and-races/race-reports/chris-thompson-eilish-mccolgan-triumph-at-great-south-while-team-england-impress-in-toronto-weekend-round-up/20345 Sun, 21 Oct 2018 17:27:23 +0000 https://fastrunning.com/?p=20345 British athletes impress at the Great South Run and the Toronto Waterfront Marathon, while the regional cross country relays are among the other top events. Chris Thompson enjoyed a historic third victory at the Great South Run in Portsmouth (October 21) to beat Andy Vernon by a comfortable margin and a big PB, while Eilish […]

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]]> British athletes impress at the Great South Run and the Toronto Waterfront Marathon, while the regional cross country relays are among the other top events.

Chris Thompson enjoyed a historic third victory at the Great South Run in Portsmouth (October 21) to beat Andy Vernon by a comfortable margin and a big PB, while Eilish McColgan debuted over the distance with a win over Steph Twell and Gemma Steel.

Thompson’s winning time was his fastest by 27 seconds when he crossed the line with a big smile in 46:56 in unusually still conditions for this seafront event.

He pulled away from Vernon at around the seven mile mark, up until which point the two Aldershot, Farnham & District athletes had been head to head.

The victory will give the affable Thompson a boost ahead of his forthcoming run in the New York Marathon on November 4. Look out for a Fast Running interview with the 2:11 marathoner this coming week!

Vernon also scored a big PB of 47:29, his first time under the 48 minute barrier, beating his old mark by 30 seconds. Thames Valley’s Petros Surafel was third in 48:05.

Dundee Hawkhill’s McColgan was a convincing winner in her first attempt at the distance following an impressive year on the track.

Photo: The Great Run Company

Although she too enjoyed a tight battle with AFD’s Twell, she also pulled away in the closing miles to take the win in a debut 54:43 to Twell’s 55:16.

Steel did well to put her recent health concerns to one side and clock a 56:56 result and cross the line with her trademark grin to reassure her coach, Liz McColgan that all was well after her endeavours.

The England team excelled themselves at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon (Oct 21), with international debutant Hayley Carruthers the stand out performer when she knocked an incredible 11 minutes off her PB to run 2:36:47.

The Rotherham Harrier is coached by Gary Warhurst, and spoke to Fast Running recently about her training this year, having only started running seriously less than a year ago.

Ipswich Jaffa’s seasoned international and V35, Helen Davies, also had a very good run, crossing the line in 2:35:12, her fastest marathon for six years!

Tonbridge’s Henry Pearce was another English athlete to enjoy a stunning performance with a 2:19:22 result on his first attempt at the distance.

Friend and Olympic athlete Jake Wightman was understandably over the moon for the youngster when he tweeted: “Sub 2:20 in first full marathon, whilst balancing studying and training over the past month. What a hero!”

The race was clearly one for fast times as England’s fourth entry, Crawley’s James Westlake, also ran a PB with a 2:23:05 result. Well done Team England!

One final result that must be mentioned is Ireland’s incredible Paul Moran, who ran a superb 2:44:15 – he is 55 years-old!

Returning to British shores, athletes were also in action on the Portsmouth harbour front the previous day, taking on the Great South 5k (October 20).

The Isle of Wight’s 16 year-old Henry McLuckie won in a huge 15:55 PB, bettering his previous best by a massive 65 seconds. He has, however, run a 16:05 parkrun this year.

Poole AC’s Jed Skilton was second in 16:12, also a PB for the teenager, while the City of Portsmouth’s Jonny White’s 16:20 was a lifetime best by more than two minutes!

AFD’s Lauren Hall won the women’s race in 17:24, which was down on her 16:57 PB but good enough for victory on the day. Sonja Vernikov was second in 17:59 while the City of Portsmouth’s Rhiannon Dunlop was one second ahead of her PB with 18:06 for third.

Area cross country relays

Highgate Harriers won the men’s race at the Southern Cross Country Relays (October 20) at Wormwood Scrubs from Belgrave Harriers and Thames Valley Harriers, while Wycombe Phoenix took the women’s title from Herne Hill Harriers with Belgrave Harriers in third.

Wycombe Phoenix’s winning team was made up of top track veteran Zoe Doyle (11:41), ultra runner and sport dietitian Alex Cook (12:06) and top cross country runner Pippa Woolven (11:01).

Peter Chambers (14:35), Roger Poolman (13:55), Robert Wilson (14:44) and Sean Renfer (14:33) brought Highgate Harriers’ men home first.

Rotherham Harriers’ A and B teams filled the top three finishing positions at the Northern Cross Country Relays at Sheffield but were only awarded the A team’s gold medals as B teams are not eligible for prizes.

The northern powerhouse club’s winning A team consisted of Natasha Hatswell (11:37), Nicola Devine (11:53) and Lori Handbury (12:14). Lincoln Wellington were second while Hallamshire Harriers were boosted up a position from fourth to third ahead of Rotherham’s B team.

Preston Harriers won the men’s race from Derby and Liverpool Harriers, with Preston’s Dan Bebbingto (9:51), Chris Durney (10:180, Tiarnan Crorken (10:37) and Patrick Dever (9:44) bringing their team home first.

Tipton Harriers successfully retained the men’s title at the  Midland Cross Country Relays in Wolverhampton, while Charnwood won the women’s race.

At the time of going to press, official results were unavailable for the Midland Cross Country Relays.

Marshall Milton Keynes’ Paul Mizon and Cambridge & Coleridge’s Chris Darling enjoyed a competitive fight for the title at the Cambridge Town & Gown 10k (October 21), with Mizon coming out on top with 31:38 to Darling’s 32:00. Johannes Arens was third in 32:43.

Emma Hodson won the women’s race, with 37:11 good enough for the V35 to take the win, while Joni Wildman (38:26) and Sietske Altena (39:09) were second and third respectively.

Dave Norman, who features on Fast Running among the Fast 10: class of 2018, was a worthy runner up at the Green Drive 5m (October 21) when he finished second behind Rob Danson in 25:59. No further results were available at this time.

Nicola Curtis and Matty Smith were victorious at the Anna Verrico Half Marathon (October 21), with Curtis only recently having returned from Malawi.

The Scunthorpe runner was one of just 20 British people to spend 10 days with Dame Kelly Holmes as part of the Orbis Challenge, a mission to use sport to make a positive impact on poor communities in the country.

The 34:58 10k athlete ran 89:27 to take the women’s race, while Smith’s 75:33 was good enough to win the men’s event.

Super veteran Lynne Higgins ran surely one of the fastest ever times for a V60 when she was second in 90:31, with Natalie Harris in third in 91:56.

Mark Ryhall was second in the men’s race with 76:45, with Eddy George third in 78:48.

The UK’s 10 fastest parkrun times were headed up by Elsey Davis and Paul Martelletti this week, see here for the full report.

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]]> Thompson going for three wins in a row at Great South Run http://fastrunning.com/events-and-races/events-news/thompson-going-for-three-wins-in-a-row-at-great-south-run/20332 Sat, 20 Oct 2018 06:46:34 +0000 https://fastrunning.com/?p=20332 Chris Thompson is gunning for a Simplyhealth Great South Run first when he defends his title at the ten-mile race in Porstmouth at the weekend. The 37-year-old has won the last two races on the south coast, and victory on Sunday will make it an unprecedented hat-trick as he lines up for the seventh time […]

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]]> Chris Thompson is gunning for a Simplyhealth Great South Run first when he defends his title at the ten-mile race in Porstmouth at the weekend.

The 37-year-old has won the last two races on the south coast, and victory on Sunday will make it an unprecedented hat-trick as he lines up for the seventh time in the world famous race.

No athlete has won three consecutive Great South Runs – and only Gary Staines has won three in total in the race’s 29-year history.

Thompson, fresh from winning his second consecutive Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run a fortnight ago, will go up against Aldershot, Farnham and District teammate Andy Vernon, who was forced to pull out of the half marathon in Glasgow owing to food poisoning.

Also lining up in the men’s race is 2012 Olympian Scott Overall, Libya’s Mohammed Hrezi and Euro XC team bronze medallist Alex Teuten.

Thompson, who competes in the New York City Marathon next month, said: “I’d be absolutely delighted to make it three wins in a row in Portsmouth. It’s a race which is close to my heart and to win it for the first time in 2016 was a massive moment for me.

“Everything is going in the right direction at the moment as New York draws near. I thoroughly enjoyed the victory in Glasgow two weeks ago and I’m determined to continue the good work into this race.”

Steel going for a double as well

Another athlete aiming for a repeat performance is Gemma Steel, who will return to the South coast a year on from her win in the 2017 staging of the race.

The Charnwood 32-year-old tasted victory in the Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run 10K a fortnight ago and represented England in the Commonwealth Half Marathon staged in Cardiff last week.

Despite victories over 10K in Gateshead and Glasgow this year, Steel has struggled to replicate the form that saw her achieve the third fastest 10KM in British history, and will go up against two distance running heavyweights in Steph Twell and Jo Pavey.

Twell showed her versatility earlier this year when she represented Scotland over the 1500m, 3000m and 5000m in the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, while flexing her muscles over the half marathon in Cardiff a week ago.

She made her Great South Run debut in 2010 which remains her sole 10-mile outing to date.

Pavey, however, is no stranger to Portsmouth having won on two occasions in 2006 and 2012. The hugely-experienced Olympian is still going strong at the age of 45 and will be among the contenders for the race which is broadcast live on Channel 5.

Making her 10-mile debut will be European medallist Eilish McColgan. The daughter of two-time Great South Run winner Liz took her first senior silverware this year when she claimed silver in the 500m in Berlin over the summer. The Scottish international has not raced further than 10K in her career to date.

The Simplyhealth Great South Run is televised live on Channel 5 on Sunday from 10am until 12pm.

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]]> Chris Thompson and Gemma Steel win Great South Run Titles, Plus Lots More – Weekend Review http://fastrunning.com/running-athletics-news/great-britain/chris-thompson-and-gemma-steel-win-great-south-run-titles-plus-lots-more-weekend-review/8903 Sun, 22 Oct 2017 17:39:45 +0000 https://fastrunning.com/?p=8903 Chris Thompson successfully defended his title and Gemma Steel impressed with a tactically strong win at Great South Run on Sunday (October 22). Elsewhere this weekend, Lincoln Wellington AC successfully defended both their senior titles at the Northern Athletics Cross Country Relays, plus a round-up on Bud’s Run, Abingdon Marathon, Stroud Half Marathon and more. […]

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]]> Chris Thompson successfully defended his title and Gemma Steel impressed with a tactically strong win at Great South Run on Sunday (October 22).

Elsewhere this weekend, Lincoln Wellington AC successfully defended both their senior titles at the Northern Athletics Cross Country Relays, plus a round-up on Bud’s Run, Abingdon Marathon, Stroud Half Marathon and more.

Great South Run – Portsmouth, Sunday, October 22
The remnants of storm Brian made conditions difficult on the coastal 10-mile route. However, like in the rain at the Great Scottish Run a few weeks ago, Chris Thompson proved the strongest of the field and successfully defended his Great South Run title.

The Aldershot Farnham & District athlete is the first winner in fourteen years to win the event for two consecutive years. In very windy conditions Thompson set out at around five-minute mile pace into a strong headwind. At the four mile mark, there was a group of around seven athletes including; Matt Sharp, Ben Conner and Mick Clohisey. Connor and Thompson pushed the pace and soon found themselves running side by side with a small gap back to Matt Sharp.

The wind and possibly the early pace told coming into the final mile. Thompson made his move and maintained the solo effort all the way to the line, taking the win in 48:32.

Matt Sharp, in the closing stages, found some extra reserves and passed Ben Connor in the home straight to finish second with 48:35, an impressive run just four weeks after his 2:16:02 marathon in Berlin.

A tired Connor held on to third with 48:36. Behind Connor, like at the English National Cross-country this year, Alex Teuton of Southampton AC finished fourth.

The women’s race again came down to the final mile, with Gemma Steel catching long Lily Partridge to take the win.

Partridge had broken away from Steel and Charlotte Purdue at mile seven, with only Steel able to keep the 26-year-old within sight of catching.

As the pair came into the final two-mile seafront stretch Steel’s experience and race tactics came to the front over the last half a mile to pip Partridge, breaking the tape in 55.25. Partridge held on for second in 55:37, with club mate Purdue taking third in 55:43.

The top three in each race also won English 10-Mile Road Championships titles.

Northern Athletics Cross Country Relays – Sheffield, Saturday, October 21
Lincoln Wellington AC successfully defended both there men’s and women’s title at the Northern Cross Country Relays.

It was to be a third relay medal of the autumn for the Lincoln Wellington men, adding to their Northern Road Relay title won in September and their bronze medal from the National Road Relays. Joe Wilkinson got Lincoln off to a great start winning the first leg by seventeen seconds from Jamie Roden of Sale Harriers, Manchester. Lincoln lead from start to finish in a dominant display of cross country running over the 4x2mile event. Preston Harriers took the silver with a great last leg from Patrick Dever taking them from fifth to second position by the finishing line. Sale Harriers took the bronze.

The fastest leg of the day came from Lincoln Wellington runner Joe Wilkinson who used his first leg advantage to clock 10:12. The chasing Patrick Dever ran the second fastest with 10:20 on leg four. It was cross country and mountain running specialist Joe Steward of East Cheshire Harriers who posted the third fastest time with 10:29 on leg two.

Lincoln Wellington AC women equally impressed to successfully defended their title. Birtley AC finished second with Sale Harriers taking the bronze medal back to Manchester.

Harriet Knowles Jones of Warrington AC got her cross country season off to a flying start running the fastest leg of the day by 27 seconds with 11:30.

Unfortunately, she was running for an incomplete team but the young talent will be looking towards the European Cross Country Championships where she finished third last year. Abbie Donnelly of Lincoln Wellington AC took the second fastest leg with 11:57 and Lydia Turner of Birtley third fastest with 12:05.

South of England Cross Country Relays – London, October 21

The senior men’s title was won by Hillingdon with Mohamed D Mohamed sealing the victory on the final leg. Finishing over a minute behind was Highgate Harriers, with Belgrave Harriers claiming third.

Chelmsford sealed the senior women’s title, with Belgrave in second and eleven seconds separating them and London Heathside in third.

Bud’s Run – Birmingham, Saturday, October 21
In its fourth year, Bud’s Run again attracted some top quality athletes for the 5km event at Birmingham University. Despite very blustery conditions, Tom Dodd of Birchfield Harriers took the win in 15:19. Alex Rieley of Mansfield was ten seconds adrift in second and third place went to Amber Valley’s Jethro Mcgraw with 15:33.

The first woman was Victoria Wier from City of Plymouth in 17:19 and second went to Charlotte Penfold of North Shields Poly in 17:44, just in front of Birchfield’s Julia Cooke in 17:49.

Abingdon Marathon – Oxfordshire, Sunday, October 22
The town of Abingdon in Oxfordshire staged another popular event, producing some great performances and times. In the men’s race, it was Tom Charles of Trafford AC who led the field to victory. Just two weeks ago Tom finished runner-up at the York Marathon. To recover and race again so soon is no mean feat but to follow up his time of 2:25:52 in York with 2.29.29 shows fantastic consistency.

Hilary Mott stormed to the win in the women’s race, posting a super quick 2:49:50, like all races this weekend in less than ideal conditions.

Stroud Half Marathon, Stroud – Sunday, October 22
Philip Bridge of Wells City Harriers took the victory at the Stroud Half Marathon in 69:41 while Shona Crombie-Hicks of Cheltenham & County Harriers won the women’s race in a 1:23:07.

David Bell of Cirencester athletics club was second in the men’s race in 1:10:03 from Alistair Cambell with 1:10:35.
In second and third place for the women was Robyn Jackson of Dursley Running Club with a time of 1:25:22 and Tara Grosvenor in 1:25:26.

Other weekend highlights
Only a week after winning Manchester half-marathon, Rebecca Hilland ran a personal best over 10km. The Norway based athlete raced near Oslo at Royse in the Hytteplanmila 10k posting a time of 33:36. Next weekend the Team Bath athlete travel to Frankfurt and in current form will look to lower her marathon time.

Away from the UK racing scene, two world records were broken.
Kenyan Joyciline Jepkosgei improved her own world record by one second to win the Valencia Half Marathon in 64.51.

At the final of the Vertical KM World Series, in Fully, Switzerland Philip Götsch of Italy won in an astonishing time of 28.53, setting a new world record for the event – a vertical km consists of 1000m of elevation in as short a distance as possible.

The post Chris Thompson and Gemma Steel win Great South Run Titles, Plus Lots More – Weekend Review appeared first on Fast Running.

]]> Chris Thompson Set To Defend Great South Run Crown http://fastrunning.com/running-athletics-news/great-britain/chris-thompson-set-to-defend-great-south-run-crown/8692 Mon, 16 Oct 2017 13:35:18 +0000 https://fastrunning.com/?p=8692 Chris Thompson aims to make October a month to remember by successfully defending his Great South Run title in Portsmouth on Sunday (October 22). The 10-mile coastal race returns this weekend and 2016 champion Thompson is in excellent recent form after winning the Great Scottish Run at the beginning of the month. In Glasgow, the 36-year-old rolled […]

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]]> Chris Thompson aims to make October a month to remember by successfully defending his Great South Run title in Portsmouth on Sunday (October 22).

The 10-mile coastal race returns this weekend and 2016 champion Thompson is in excellent recent form after winning the Great Scottish Run at the beginning of the month.

In Glasgow, the 36-year-old rolled back the years to outshine race favourite Callum Hawkins in the popular half marathon.

Thompson, who beat Aldershot Farnham and District club-mate Andy Veron in the closing stages of the Portsmouth race last year, should be confident that he can repeat last year’s race outcome.

“I’ve been coming here for years and it was such a relief last year to finally win. It meant so much to me and this will be my motivation on Sunday,” Thompson told race organisers. “The body takes longer to get going these days so we will see how it responds once the race gets underway, but I am hoping for another good day at what is a fantastic event.”

The winning time last year was 47.23, with Vernon posting in 48:09 for second and triathlete Matt Sharp third in 48:18.

Challengers in the men’s race include last year’s third-placed finisher Matt Sharp, reigning English Cross country champion Ben Connor, and Wales’ Andrew Davies and Ireland’s Mick Clohisey who both competed at this year’s World Championships.

Tirunesh Dibaba, the winner in 2016 will be not be returning to defend her women’s title. The Ethiopian who chatted with Fast Running recently won the Chicago Marathon win two weeks ago.

That leaves the women’s field wide open, and entries confirmed include British duo Gemma Steel and Charlotte Purdue. Steel is in impressive form and most recently finished sixth in September’s Great North Run, clocking 71:32. It was the 2014 European Cross Country champion’s fastest half marathon since 2015.

The Charnwood AC athlete was sixth in last year’s race with a time of 55:18 and will be aiming for at least a podium spot this year.

Purdue, meanwhile, finished second at the Great Scottish Run in 72:18, just over two minutes behind Flomena Cheyech Daniel. The 26-year-old competed in the marathon at this summer’s World Championships finishing an impressive 13th in 2:29:48.

Also challenging in the women’s race will be Tracy Barlow and Katrina Wootton. Like Purdue, Barlow competed at the World Championships in London, finishing 43rd.

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