The weekend also saw speedy 10k’s at the Speedway 10k, Richmond, Pilling, and Nottingham and a handful of British runners getting World Champs qualifying times in just one 1500m race in the US.

Fast10’s Hannah Irwin was not only racing over 5000m this weekend but brings you the weekend round up for UK athletes at home and abroad.

Friday night out

Friday’s Podium 5k road race saw some cracking performances, with 33 people running 16:35 and under, despite being faced with truly wet British weather conditions.

Ben Connor took gold in a time of 13:54, 48 seconds ahead of second place. The St. Helens & Sutton athlete, Matthew Crehan, ran the exact same time of 14:42 as he did at the Fast Friday 5,000, even with the conditions not being favourable. One second behind in third place, was Morpeth’s Nick McCormick in 14:43.

Photo: David Belshaw

In Scotland the race was run over 5 miles at the Black Rock 5. Both the men and women pulled out brilliant performances. Lamar university student, Jamie Crowe, ran his first 5-mile race since 2013, running a four minute, 21 second PB of 22:05. Behind Crowe, in 22:44, was James Donald followed by Neil Renault in 23:23.

The former European Junior 1500m Champion, Morag Millar, ran to the top of the podium. Millar ran a strong race to cross the line in 25:25, 36 seconds ahead of second place, Stephanie Pennycook. Third across the line was Central AC’s Natalie Stewart in a time of 27:32.

Saturday night at the races

Saturday was filled with races on the track and road, including the BMC Grand Prix in Loughborough, the Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon, the Dartford midnight half marathon and the Pilling 10k.

Saturday’s BMC Grand Prix saw plenty of outstanding performances.

The U20 Halifax athlete, Max Burgin showed his strength over the 800m distance. Burgin set a new PB of 1:46.80 in a race he front ran from the gun, placing himself seventh in the all-time U20 rankings.

The Judd sisters dominated the Women’s A 5000m race. Jess ran her first PB in 2 years, to set a cracking time of 15:31 to take first place. Jodie, the younger Judd, was the first U23 to cross the line in a time of 16:04, one second inside of the U23 European qualifying time! The Swansea athlete, Verity Ockenden continued to prove her form, running 15:47 to place herself second to the elder Judd. [Weekend roundup author Hannah also ran an excellent PB of 16:36 at the event – Editor]

The Men’s 5000m race also had an impressive field. The St. Mary’s athlete, Emile Cairess, took the win in 13:50 to get himself a four second PB. Cairess was closely followed by Ellis Cross in 13:52 with another PB. Jake Shelley took bronze, crossing the finish line with a time of 13:56.

Also on the track an outstanding performance was given by Edinburgh AC’s Josh Kerr at the Brave Like Gabe men’s 1500m. Kerr crossed the line in 3:33:60 to get the win and break Steve Cram’s British U23 best! There was also a 3:35.95 PB for fellow Scot Neil Gourley and 3:35.74 for James West [who “bitch-kicked Gourley in the home straight”, whatever that means – Editor]

All three ran inside the qualifying time for the 1500m for the World Championships, which is a great sign for British middle distance running.

Over four times the distance, Steph Twell took to the road in the Czech Republic at the Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon. Twell finished in fifth, crossing the line in 75:57. The 2:30 marathoner and recent winner of the Vitality London 10,000 led until halfway through the race, but faded in the second half.

Photo: Leigh Quinnel

Closer to home

The Dartford Midnight Half also took place on Saturday. Annaka Charters of Victoria Park Harriers dominated the race, finishing with a massive PB of 1:25:00, in an outright win.

The Pilling 10k, part of the Lancashire Race Series, saw Simon Croft of the Red Rose RR claim first prize in a time of 34:01, just under two-minutes ahead of Border Harriers’ Steven Berry. First woman across the line in a time of 43:59, was Blackburn Harriers’ Rachel Gavin, followed by Heather Travis in 45:05.

The fast and flat Speedway 10k did not disappoint. The rain managed to hold off to allow a very classy field of athletes to perform. At the top of the men’s podium, in an impressive 29:55 was Cardiff’s Matt Clowes. Behind him in second place was the Swansea athlete, Josh Griffiths. Griffiths clocked 30:12 whilst James Hunt ran 30:44 to come in third.

The first lady across the line was Lauren Cooper in a huge PB time. Cooper ran a 1 minute 34 second personal best to achieve a time of 34:54. The second lady home in 36:14 was Alaw Beynon-Thomas.

Also over the 10k distance, as part of the Surrey Road League was the Ranelagh Richmond 10k. Epsom’s Ollie Garrod claimed first place in 32:22, followed by Simon Baines of Thames Hare & Hounds in a time of 32:45 and Nick Marriage in third in 33:31.

The women’s race was won by Liz Davies with a significant lead. Davies just popped under 35-minutes, running 34:58 for the 10k distance. In second was Emily Wicks in 36:20 and third place went to Alice McGushin in 37:26.

In Nottingham, the Run For All- Nottingham 10k took place. Patrick Townsend of Notts AC took gold in the men’s race in 34:40, whilst Nicole Swaffield was first female across the line in 38:30.

On the trails

The long running Seven Hills of Edinburgh is described as “a combination of road-running, cross-country, hill-running, and urban orienteering [with] 14.3 miles in length and with 2200 feet of ascent/descent”. The men’s winner was New Zealand international runner Sam McCutcheon in 1:37:21, running for Corstorphine AAC and the women’s winner was Irish international Nicola Duncan running for Carnethy in a time of 2:05:46.

Photo: Peter MacDonald

parkrun

Danielle Hodgkinson and Omer Ahmed are your quickest parkrunners this weekend (June 15). Check out the full rankings here.

RELATED: 7 ways to run faster at parkrun

Are you a fan of Fast Running? Then please support us and become a patron. For as little as the price of a monthly magazine you can support Fast Running – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

The post Ben Connor & Jess Judd shine over the 5k distance, whilst Josh Kerr breaks British U23 record – Weekend roundup appeared first on Fast Running.

A stunning world indoor 1500m record by Samuel Tefera of Ethiopia was backed up by an emphatic smashing of the British record by Laura Muir at the Muller Indoor Grand Prix Birmingham on Saturday (February 16).

In the women’s mile at Arena Birmingham, Muir was the winner by over 10 seconds from Uganda’s Winnie Nanyondo in a new British record of 4:18.75.

The mark puts Muir third on the all-time list behind Ethiopia’s world record holder Genzebe Dibaba and Romania’s Doina Melinte.

En route to the mile record, that had previously been held for 31 years by Kirsty Wade with 4:23.86, Muir also broke her own 1500m mark for the UK. The 1500m split was a rapid 4:01.83, but it was her own best that the European champion was improving.

“I am really, really happy to have got another British record,” said Muir afterwards. “The reception was amazing and I am so happy I could deliver that today.

“To get the British record was fantastic, but, for me, it was just about having a solid run today, coming away with the win and with a good time and I have done that with the world lead and the joint third fastest time ever behind the current world and European record – I will take third. When you run by yourself, it is tough, but I felt good.”

Muir added: “I just wanted to run a similar distance to 1500m because I have not raced over 1500m since the end of last season. It was the perfect way to prepare for Glasgow, to run one of the fastest times ever, a British record and get the win in the last race for a championships is perfect. So, I am really happy and confident going into Glasgow.”

The reigning European 1500m and 3000m champion is aiming to retain both titles at the European Indoor Championships in Glasgow and is looking in excellent form to do just that.

With only two weeks to go, it is a big statement to those trying to beat the Scot at either distance in her home country.

Tickets are still available for those who want to see some indoor action at the beginning of March.

World record for 19 year old Tefera

A world 1500m record for Ethiopian teenager Samuel Tefera was another highlight of the evening. The 19 year-old ran a blistering 3:31.04 to set the new indoor 1500m mark, but the way the race was won made it even more entertaining.

World record for Ethiopia's Samuel Tefera caps off sensational day in Birmingham #WorldIndoorTour

:https://t.co/PACerCGCec pic.twitter.com/adaO4WJkZc

— IAAF (@iaaforg) February 16, 2019

The young Ethiopian raced with compatriot Yomif Kejelcha after the pace makers set an electric pace from the start. Kejelcha, 21, narrowly missed Hicham El Guerrouj’s mile indoor record last week at the Melrose Games and was the favourite for this event. Yet it was the even younger Tefera who was the victor and the new indoor world record holder.

“I can’t believe that,” said Tefera post-race. “I’m delighted with the outcome and to have the world record is a special feeling.”

The fast pace at the front helped British runners excel as well, with Josh Kerr finishing fourth in a Scottish record of 3:35.72.

Four British runners broke 3:40 with Chris O’Hare fifth with 3:37.42, Charlie Grice ninth in 3:39.04 and Elliot Giles 10th in 3:39.53.

McColgan keen to prove fitness for Glasgow

Eilish McColgan ran the 3000m at the Birmingham meet and finished seventh in 8:57.19, which is her best time of 2019.

After missing the British indoor champs due to illness it will be the performance that selectors for the European Championships will look at.

Hopefully, the determined running of the distance athlete will be enough to give her a medal opportunity in Glasgow next month.

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The post Laura Muir stars as records tumble in Birmingham appeared first on Fast Running.

The 2019 IAAF World Indoor Tour, a series of the six finest indoor meetings on the planet, kicks off with the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston on Saturday (January 26).

Staged over the course of 26 action-packed days, the series includes stops in Karlsruhe, Torun, Madrid and Birmingham, before reaching its final destination Düsseldorf on February 20.

The series winners will be crowned in the German city, where they will also be awarded prize bonuses of US$20,000 and wildcard entries for the 2020 World Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China.

2019 marks the series’ third edition, but it’s already showing its widespread appeal. The Karlsruhe, Birmingham and Dusseldorf fixtures have sold out well in advance, the Polish meeting is on target to host yet another sell-out crowd of 5200 at Torun Arena, and Madrid is on target for a near-capacity crowd.

British and Irish distance interests in Boston

British distance runners have had great success over in the US, none more than Chris O’Hare in recent years. The 3:52 miler won the Wanamaker Mile at the Millrose Games last February amongst a whole host of other top-class performances in 2018. The British 1500m champion will race over 3000m in Boston.

Other British runners on the same startline will be Andy Butchart returning from injury and Andrew Heyes. Both could feature in the sharp end of the race but the man to beat will likely be Edward Cheserek. The Kenyan born athlete has been in the US since high school and is the most successful NCAA athlete in history.

In the women’s mile, Great Britain’s Hannah England and Ireland’s Ciara Mageean will both feature against strong domestic and international runners with the likes of Emma Coburn and Cory McGee toeing the line. England is a world medallist and Olympian who is also chair of British Athletics Athlete’s Commission, working hard to get the best for her fellow athletes in the future.

The men’s mile could be interesting with young Scottish athlete Josh Kerr competing, alongside one of America’s most promising college track stars, Justyn Knight, and the Beer Mile world record holder Corey Bellemore – who may be hampered by the lack of beer drinking with this event. New Zealander Nick Willis is in the mix too.

In the men’s 800m Guy Learmouth will be racing, amongst others, Boris Berian. If you’re not aware of Berian’s story it’s worth investigating how the Olympian and World Champ went from serving fast food to running fast for a living.

Who else is hitting the boards?

While many of the fields are still t0 be finalised, several are shaping up nicely.

World indoor champion Yomif Kejelcha, Olympic medallists Clayton Murphy and Hagos Gebrhiwet and IAAF Rising Star award winner Sydney McLaughlin are just a few of the stars who will help get the series underway on the US east coast.

Karlsruhe will feature Cuba’s rising long jump sensation Juan Miguel Echevarria, world and Olympic pole vault champion Ekaterini Stefanidi in the pole vault, and European high jump champion Mateusz Przybylko.

Echevarria returns to action in Torun four days later on a slate that includes double European champion Laura Muir, world indoor champions Pawel Maslak and Andrew Pozzi and three world champions in the pole vault: Sam Kendricks, Shawn Barber and Pawel Wojciechowski.

Later in the series, Muir is also set to compete in Birmingham among a host of world indoor medallists.

RELATED: Laura Muir set for return to the Arena Birmingham

A strong men’s 60m showdown will include world indoor silver medallist and Asian indoor record holder Su Bingtian taking on Reece Prescod, the European 100m silver medallist, and twice European indoor 60m champion Richard Kilty.

Meanwhile, some of the featured showdowns in Dusseldorf include Pozzi taking on Olympic silver medallist Orlando Ortega in the 60m hurdles, Stefanidi facing 2015 world champion Yarisley Silva in the pole vault, and the Ingebrigtsen brothers, double European champion Jakob, European silver medallist Henrik and 2017 world bronze medallist Filip in the 1500m.

Disciplines and scoring

The tour will feature 11 point-scoring disciplines (those that were not part of this year’s tour programme), five for men – 400m, 1500m, 60m hurdles, high jump, long jump – and six for women – 60m, 800m, 3000m/5000m, pole vault, triple jump and shot put.

Each athlete’s best three results will count towards their point score and the athlete with the most points in each discipline at the end of the tour will be declared the winner at the finale in Dusseldorf.

New competition order rule introduced in jumping and throwing events

The series will also introduce a rule change this year in the jumping and throwing events. In addition to the re-order in reverse ranking after the first three rounds, another re-order will be added after the fifth round.

2019 IAAF World Indoor Tour

January 26 – Boston
February 2 – Karlsruhe
February 6 – Torun
February 8 – Madrid
February 16 – Birmingham
February 20 – Dusseldorf

RELATED: Indoors: not just for the elites

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The post IAAF World Indoor Tour kicks off this weekend appeared first on Fast Running.

The University of New Mexico student, who is one of the most promising middle-distance runners of his generation, clocked 3:35.01 to break the long-standing record set by Sydney Maree of Villanova (3:35.30) in 1981.

Assisted by pacemakers until the final lap, the 20-year-old Scot was leading at the bell with Syracuse’s Justyn Knight and Robert Domanic of the University of Mississippi in close pursuit, before he pulled away down the home straight to take the win.

Syracuse’s Knight was second in 3:36.07 and Domanic finished third in 3:36.33.

Last month, Kerr successfully retained his NCAA indoor mile crown at the NCAA Indoor Championships becoming the first male athlete, since Lee Emanuel in 2010, to win back-to-back NCAA mile crowns.

As well as winning the indoor mile title in 2017 he was also crowned the NCAA outdoor 1500m champion – the first to achieve this double feat since 2008.

Kerr competed at the Millrose Games earlier this year, where he raced in prestigious NYRR Wanamaker Mile and clocked a big personal best 3:54.72 to finish runner-up to fellow Scot Chris O’Hare.

The post Scotland’s Josh Kerr breaks American collegiate record appeared first on Fast Running.

After becoming the first man since 2008 to win both the NCAA mile indoor win and outdoor 1500m, Kerr went to the NCAA Division I Indoor Championships as the strong favourite and lived up to the billing.

The 20-year-old Scottish athlete had advanced comfortably from the earlier round on Friday and led the final from the off. He temporarily the relinquished the lead position halfway through before taking the front of the race again with three laps to go. With 400m left, Virginia Tech’s Vincent Ciattei and Oregon’s Sam Prakel still had a chance of upsetting the favourite.

However, as the bell rang the University of New Mexico student upped the ante and pulled away with a 26.71 final 200m to retain his NCAA indoor crown in 3:57.02.

ANOTHER ONE!

Josh Kerr is the #ncaaTF Mile Champion AGAIN! pic.twitter.com/ztGM9jZ68y

— NCAA Track & Field (@NCAATrackField) March 10, 2018

Ciattei took second in 3:58.36 with Prakel third in 3:58.59.

Kerr, who competed for Great Britain at the World Championships in London last year, is the first male athlete to win back-to-back NCAA mile crowns since Lee Emanuel in 2010.

That national championship feeling. #GoLobos #NCAATF pic.twitter.com/ajgeuyKiSl

— New Mexico XC/T&F (@UNMLoboXCTF) March 10, 2018

In February Kerr competed at the prestigious NYRR Wanamaker Mile running big personal best in 3:54.72 to runner-up to fellow Scot Chris O’Hare.

Elsewhere, in the men’s 4x400m, three teams finished under Poland’s recent 3:01.77 world indoor record set at World Indoor Championships in Birmingham.

The University of Southern California quartet clocked 3:00.77 with Texas A&M running 3:01.39 followed by Florida in 3:01.43.

Earlier in the evening, Michael Norman, who anchored the USC team in the 4x400m relay, also broke the 400m world indoor record clocking 44.52 to improve on Kerron Clement’s 44.57 best set in 2005.

The post Josh Kerr wins his second NCAA indoor mile title appeared first on Fast Running.

In a field that included defending champion Eric Jenkins of the USA and New Zealand’s two-time Olympic medalist Nick Willis, O’Hare quickly made a statement of intent as took the lead sprinting around the 200m track at the Armory.

The 27-year-old Scot built up a huge gap between himself and the rest of the field going into the final lap. His challengers were not throwing in the towel though and fellow Scot Josh Kerr and USA’s Ben Blankenship gave it their all to draw O’Hare back in.

But despite clearly tiring after his earlier efforts, O’Hare held on impressively to win a first Wanamaker Mile title and becomes only the second ever British winner after John Whetton in 1965.

O’Hare crossed the line in 3:54.14, with NCAA indoor and outdoor 800m and 1500m champion Kerr second in a PB 3:54.72. Kerr now moves to fifth on the UK all-time rankings.

Blankenship finished third in 3:54.77, with Charlie Grice sealing three of the top four spots for British athletes in 3:56.47.

USA’s Collen Quigley won the women’s Wanamaker Mile with Ireland’s Ciara Mageean third. A recap of the action can be found here.

After leading from the front early in the men’s 3000m race Britain’s Andy Butchart finished fifth in 7:47.21. Shadrack Kipchirchir took the win in 7:45.49.

Kyle Langford opened his indoor season with a world indoor championships qualifying time of 1:46.43 in the men’s 800m race. The 22-year-old, who narrowly missed out on a medal at the outdoor World Championships in London last year, finished fourth.

The race was won by Kenyan Emmanuel Korir with an African indoor record of 1:44.21. Korir’s impressive time also moves him to third on the indoor world all-time list.

Lynsey Sharp, along with Kendra Chambers, Ce’aira Brown, Cecilia Barowski made up the New York All-Stars quartet that finished second in the women’s 4x800m relay race.

Elsewhere, Olympic 400m gold medalist Shaunae Miller-Uibo posted 35.45 for 300m to equal the world indoor record.

The women’s 3000m was won by Jamaica’s Aisha Praught-Leer in 8:41.10, with USA’s world steeplechase champion Emma Corburn second.

The post Chris O’Hare storms to Wanamaker Mile win at Millrose Games appeared first on Fast Running.