Add a couple of weeks to that and, after a year’s delay and anticipation, the gun will go off in Sapporo in northern Japan to signal the start of the women’s marathon.

Three British athletes, Steph Davis, Steph Twell and Jess Piasecki will be lining up for those 26.2 miles. For all three, it is their Olympic marathon debut, and for two their maiden Olympics. 

James Rhodes had the opportunity to speak to all three at the Team GB Kitting Out event at the NEC in Birmingham, where they shared their thoughts on training, their Olympic journeys, and expectations of the occasion. 

The first of three pieces is with Steph Davis, winner of the Olympic Marathon Trials in Kew Gardens in March and the only automatic selection for the Olympics as a result. This will be her first Olympics, and also the first time she has worn the GB vest. The Clapham Chaser goes to Japan with a PB of 2:27.16 and looking forward to the fourth marathon of her career. 

The first interview

It has undoubtedly been an exciting few weeks, and will continue to be. We asked Steph whether, now she has her Team GB kit in her hands, it feels that little bit more real that in 59 days she will be on the start line for an Olympic marathon:

“I still have to pinch myself to realise it’s actually happening! Coming here today has definitely helped cement that, it’s been awesome going round and trying on all the kit, I feel like a little girl trying on fancy dress clothes! It’s all a bit mad, but seeing the Team GB branding really helps to cement it as real!”

After that race in Kew Gardens, where the Clapham Chaser took 24 seconds off her PB and punched her ticket to Japan, she spoke to Gill Bland to reflect on the race, and said she would take some time off to mentally and physically recover and recharge to lead into a healthy build up to Sapporo. I asked both how that time off went, but also how training has been going since with less than two months until race day:

“I took three weeks off and that was good, especially with all the excitement, it helped to put some time into that and get used to it, because I wasn’t used to that much attention!

My build up has slowly started, and everything is going well so far. I am heading to Majorca tomorrow to do some warm weather acclimatisation, which will be great. It will be interesting to see how I adapt and how I perform in the heat. We’ve got nine weeks to go, lots to crack on with and do, it’s going to be hard work and I’m looking forward to it”.

Ready for the conditions

Of course, the potential extreme weather conditions have been a major talking point, particularly after the World Championships marathon in Doha 2019, and a challenge for the athletes to prepare for, something Steph has not had to deal with in her marathons to date in London, Berlin and Valencia. Handily, however, the weather in England has started to provide some useful acclimatisation:

“Even just the weather here hotting up in the last few days has really made me realise how much harder it might actually be, so I am looking forward to getting away and the sooner we start the better”. 

Last month, Matt Long spoke to Steph’s coach, Phil Kissi, about his coaching inspirations, principles and approach for the soon-to-be Olympian and her clubmates. In that two-part interview, Phil noted the benefits he feels Steph has had from an element of her training being group-based. 

Working together to grow stronger

Her clubmates include Rose Harvey, who ran an impressive 2:30:58 at the Cheshire Elite Marathon in April to improve her lifetime best by 25 minutes and go inside the Commonwealth Games standard. I asked Steph how much of a role the performances of her clubmates have played in inspiring and pushing her on in training and on the road to Tokyo. 

“It’s definitely helpful to do some training with the group and having people that are just inspiring athletes. All of my teammates ran at Cheshire and Rose obviously had an amazing day, and a few others that didn’t get the goal they wanted to, but they come down, they work hard, they’re amazing athletes and they bring banter, so it just makes training a bit more relaxing and good fun! 

I’ll definitely miss that when I go to Spain, but when I train I’m not worried about it. I trained for Kew [the Olympic trials] on my own, and my partner comes out with me when he can. He doesn’t do as much volume as I do, but he’ll start me off for a lot of my sessions and we work together, so I’ll have him by my side”.

A first time for GB

After missing the World Half Marathon Championships due to injury, the Olympics will be the first time Steph has got the chance to wear a British or Team GB vest. Not a bad occasion to make your debut! To end, I asked Steph what she was most looking forward to about the occasion and experience as an Olympian:

“I am just so excited! I had all that kit sitting at home, and it feels a bit mad that now I have got more GB kit! I can’t wait to wear it and I’ll just feel so proud standing on that line with the gear on ready to go!”

The post Countdown to Tokyo: Steph Davis appeared first on Fast Running.

Pre race energies 

Everyone likes to get obsessive about the weather and what they eat the night before their race, and with high stakes like the trials, of course this was no different. 

Clara Edwards, laughs ‘us runners really are a funny bunch’, ‘ it was so funny seeing all the athletes arrive with their cooking paraphernalia in the lobby. I saw microwaves, I took a toaster for my breakfast, the only thing that didn’t get bought was a kitchen sink!’ .

Reading AC’s Naomi Mitchell recalls that “everyone was in really good spirits and excited to race. We were all trying to gauge the weather on our warm up loop to see how windy it was going to be” and Rosie Edwards found “the energy around the race was so positive and I think every athlete was grateful to be there. It felt different to all other marathons. There was a positive atmosphere and gratitude.”

The level of attrition from this lead pack was possibly higher than usual on the slightly lonely looped route in Kew. Credit: Nigel Bramley

Going in confident

The only one already with a qualifying time, Steph Davis had been waiting a long time to run this race and had plenty of time to think about what might happen.

But rather than focussing on the magnitude of the task the Clapham Chaser made sure she just had a “pre-race chat with my coach and played through different scenarios in my mind so that in the moments before the start I was only focussing on the warmup and the final bits of preparation”.

That said, she did “change outfit about three times” thanks to the very mixed forecast.

Of course this was no normal race situation and for marathon debutante Becky Briggs there was not only the first time nerves but also the fact that “the concept of a start line felt so unfamiliar” and they had to do “our warmup strides with a mask on”.

Imagine racing the trials in the middle of a pandemic as your first marathon – and as the youngest competitor!

Running into the wind

What might not have been completely clear from the online coverage was that while the course was indeed a fast one, and the potentially sharp corners had been carefully smoothed out, there was quite a headwind on the longest straight section of the route. 

As we now know, the race ranged from textbook, to tantalising, to unexpectedly wonderful, to frustratingly awful for the women taking part. Understandably some didn’t want to think about it again because it was all a bit too raw, but others were able to share some of the positives and negatives of the day.

Elite marathoners are not immune to stomach and nutrition issues and that does seem to have been a common theme of this race.

Some just had to battle with the trials of being female – Charlotte Taylor-Green had bad stomach issues due to being on her period but refuses to be upset by it “you can’t control everything – my body and health is priority and I did what I had to for me… I want to continue running for a long time, there’s no rush”. 

Clara Evans, Naomi Mitchell and Becs Gentry working together with their pace group. Credit: Nigel Bramley

Not every plan works out as you want

For Naomi Mitchell the day didn’t pan out as she hoped either, “early on I had some frustrating stomach cramps but was finding the pace easy. I decided to drop back and let my stomach settle but…the wind meant I couldn’t get back into a rhythm and ended up slowing”. 

Youngster Becky Briggs had an impressive start and kept going with the pacers for as long as possible. Many commented at the time on her gutsy attitude and it was only at half way that she took the decision to drop back a bit after realising that the pace was too intense.

Unfortunately it was too late and the damage was done “it was like I hit a wall, I didn’t take nearly enough fuel in the first half and really paid the price for that”.

Becky Briggs tackling hard solo miles in the second half. Photo: Nigel Bramley

It’s an easy mistake to make when everything is feeling good and Becky told us that she nearly gave in at 21 miles (which she’d completed at 2:32 pace). “My mind and body were really fighting each other but I was determined to get to the end“.

One wonders whether a bit more of an atmosphere might have helped her out at this point and Bekcy agrees “it would have made a huge difference. All the marshalls there did a great job, but nothing beats a roaring crowd all the way round. There were some really lonely parts of Kew”.

Instead she battled on with just the covid-safe crew doing their best to help out, “around 10k to go was really bad, my vision had blurred and I was stumbling around but I kept telling myself ‘Becky you do not give up, that is not who you are’ “. And she did, completing the race in 2:38:58 after walk-running the last 5 miles.

Training the gut for race day too

Sarah Inglis, one of the pre-race favourites had a similarly gruelling trudge to the end, but she doesn’t think even a crowded mass-marathon would have helped her ““I had a similar experience in Arizona (her debut of 2:29:41) with no crowds. I don’t think it made much of a difference.. If it had been my first race I’d have said never again”.

She puts her experience down to not training enough with the gels she planned to use “the first bit felt easy and within myself but I felt sick from miles 16-18 and I couldn’t take any bottles or fuel and my pace just dropped off…I tried self talk, mantras, everything but the negative talk became overwhelming and I was so glad to see the finish line.

“My grandmother said she felt so sad for me when she saw me sat on the curb at the end.”

Becky Briggs leading the pace early on in her marathon debut with Sarah Inglis also at the front of the lead group with Steph Davis. Photo: Nigel Bramley

The race begins at 20 miles…

Wales’s Clara Evans had a much less dramatic experience but still had her own issues with nutrition, she felt “incredible to 30k (her 25-30k split was only beaten by Steph) but my fuelling strategy just wasn’t right. I’d never raced with what I used on the day and I think I’ve learned the lesson that it doesn’t work for me. Perhaps in normal times I‘d have had a chance to trial them in a half marathon but it wasn’t to be. I was being sick a lot from 20 miles and I just couldn’t take on anything which was a massive shame as my legs had more to give.”

Evans had moved up into third place with 5k to go but lost about a minute on the last lap and when it was finished I was just happy it was over”. Despite that, she ran a storming time and qualified for the Commonwealth Games.

Not everyone had a tough day at the office

Rosie Edwards shows that flexible fuelling can pay off. She “was surprised when the whole field seemed to go out with the 2:28/29 pacers but held back and stuck to the plan”.

By mile nine other women were coming back to her and she passed through halfway in 1:15:48. But it wasn’t all plain sailing. By mile 15 she did “feel pretty rough, really rough like my legs were going, but I had an extra gel on me in case I missed a bottle (which I hadn’t) so I took it as a boost and it worked like a miracle”.

When the pacer stopped at 33k she knew it was time to concentrate “I was waiting for the wall and it never came…I was trying to do the maths” to see if she could get the Commonwealth Games time (spoiler, she did). “The last lap was so fun and I was still feeling good until the last 800m. I thought I was about 10th, just scraping the CWG standard but I was so excited to finish third in 2:31. Crazy”. 

The star of the show

Finally of course there’s Steph Davis for whom the planning and training all came together in what looked like an effortless display of race execution. But even she wasn’t immune to gut issues –  “I felt controlled throughout the race – apart from when I got stitch around 4k in! I usually have a pretty tough stomach and rarely get stitches, so this threw me a little, I was shouting to my coach to switch my energy drinks to water so that was a last-minute scramble!”

After that though things settled in. “The first half felt quiet so I had no idea how everyone was feeling behind me…we went through half bang on pace. Although I felt relaxed I didn’t want to do anything too early as the second half of a marathon can feel very long if you make mistakes early on!”.

As we watched the coverage, it looked like Steph made a conscious decision to break away just after 13 miles but she says “I don’t remember actively making a decision…I think it happened when we moved into single file to let the men’s race past.”

“I wasn’t aware of how big my lead was and I couldn’t take anything for granted until I’d crossed that finish line! Of course this race wasn’t about time but rather getting that top-two placing and it was only “at around 500m to go I passed a big clock and knew I was close to my PB. I was delighted to bag a small one!”.

Post race feelings 

Celebrating success and learning from less-than perfect performance are an important part of the racing cycle.

For Naomi Mitchell, the initial blow of seeing a race which didn’t reflect her training has led her to reflect that “I have now experienced what is needed to gut out a tough race and I’m sure this will be of benefit to me in the future”, though she also says she learned that “racing in the wind is much harder than I thought!”. 

Steph Davis celebrates winning the women’s marathon and securing her place to run the marathon at the Tokyo Olympics. Credit: Nigel Bramley

For Becky, her big takeaway has been that fuelling a half marathon is very different to a full marathon and needs some practice in training. That said, “giving up on my dreams is simply not a choice. I’m even more determined to get the marathon right one day and show what I’m capable of”.

Lockdown difficulties my have played an impact

A long chat with Sarah Inglis as she endured her hotel-lockdown upon re-entry to Canada found her frustrated but upbeat. All things considered, a late flight to the UK (she arrived only a few days before due to teaching duties and suffered bad jet lag) and “getting complacent” about her fuelling are the two things she thinks made the difference.

For now, she’s going to turn her thought to the track and will try to qualify for the 10,000m. “I’m excited” she says, “I did a 10k PB in a time trial in the build up to this and I’ve got nothing to lose”.

Clara Evans (who ran the biggest PB of the day) clearly has more to offer in future races, “I don’t think I’ve ever felt so fresh as I did the day after this race” but was delighted to see three Welsh PBs in the top 5 of the race.

“I may need some time to improve to get to the games, but the success of others is what has made this happen as we all push each other to improve. My coach Chris Jones has been instrumental in the progress for the Welsh standards in distance running”.

Like many she feels that the trials offered a new and more prominent way to showcase British talent,  “I hope they keep these events standalone.. I feel like everyone can relate toThommo and Steph’s journey’s… this would have been lost amongst a bigger race”. 

Always chasing better performances

Rosie Edwards may have smashed her PB and got third place but she’s not immune to a bit of “what if”, “I do feel like I played it safe for too long. Perhaps I could have gone a few miles earlier, but then I may not have finished as I did. I am excited to be braver in my next one”.

The final word has to go to Marathon Trial champion and the only auto-qualifier for team GB, Steph Davis.  “I always take two weeks off to fully recover and mentally reset. My focus now is to have a healthy build to the Olympics and stay injury free – that’s a pretty good motivator to take your recovery seriously!

The post Tales from Kew Gardens appeared first on Fast Running.

Thompson was a shade outside his personal best as he took the British title at Sunday’s Vitality Big Half in 61:07, finishing second to Kenenisa Bekele (ETH) having disputed the lead for the first five miles, and the 38-year-old Briton earns his first British vest on the road, 22 years after making his track debut at the World Junior Championships.

Fresh from lowering the British Under-23 record for the half marathon to 62:00 in London, Jake Smith will also represent Great Britain & Northern Ireland on the roads for the first time, having made his British track debut at last year’s European Under-23 Championships in Gävle, Sweden.

Having finished as the third and fourth British athletes home at the trial, both Ross Millington and Mohamud Aadan declined selection for the championship.

Progressive selection policy

With the selection policy stating that automatic selection can be offered to the next eligible athlete if declined by auto-qualifiers (in part due to hard work by members of the Athlete’s Commission), 2017 British Marathon gold medallist Josh Griffiths earns his first British vest in almost three years courtesy of his eighth-place showing at the trials.

Doha team member Ben Connor, who has already clocked 61:34 for the distance in 2020, will look to improve on his individual 64^th place finish at the 2018 instalment of the championships in Valencia, while Matt Leach, who has twice run for Britain in the European 10,000m cup, completes the senior men’s team.

On the women’s side, Partridge earns her first British vest since the 2018 European Championships in Berlin and will look to better her 70:31 personal best clocking, set in 2015, when she takes to the start line in Poland. Sarah Inglis, who moved 13^th on the all-time British list with a strong run in Houston in January, also gains selection.

British debuts are handed to Samantha Harrison and Stephanie Davis, who clocked respective personal bests of 71:01 and 71:15 for second and third-place finishes at the Big Half, with fourth place finisher, Hayley Carruthers, also earning her first British vest.

Good to see a full squad going

Ahead of the championship, team leader Chris Jones said: “The full squad of 10 for the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia showcases some of Great Britain’s most in-form athletes over the distance, exemplified by the performances at the trials and the form we have seen already this season.

“The team we have selected shows a good range of previous British international experience and features new names to the international scene and I hope this strength will be reflected in the overall outcome.

“The championships will serve as an excellent opportunity for athletes to continue their upward trajectory on the roads and I hope that we can achieve a strong team position overall.”

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The post Full teams selected for World Half appeared first on Fast Running.

Kenyan Cherono will represent Kenya at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and won both Boston and Chicago marathon’s in 2019 and has a fantastic winning record over the 26.2 distance.

Ethiopian Bekele needs no introduction and is widely considered the greatest distance runner of all time. Whilst that can be argued he is certainly a favourite amongst running purists, a three time Olympic gold medalist and multiple World XC Champion. He narrowly missed out on a marathon world record last year running 2:01:41 at Berlin Marathon.

Kenenisa Bekele faces Eluid Kipchoge in the London Marathon and Cherono will be back to defend his Boston title earlier in April.

Brits battle for World Half vests

British Athletics will be looking to pick a team of five men and five women to race in the World Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia, Poland on 29th March.

The selection policy states that the first three eligible athletes at the Big Half will be offered automatic selection provided they have the required standard (they will have if they finish within the first three Brits!).

Head to head in women’s race before VLM

Many of the contenders pushing for Tokyo 2020 marathon vests will line up on Sunday. Despite the likes of Steph Twell, Jess Piasecki, Charlotte Arter and Charlotte Purdue being absent from the published line up we will get the see the current form of Lily Partridge, Steph Davis and Hayley Carruthers.

Partridge is the fastest athlete in the field on paper and has returned to some strong form after a 2019 hit by injury. Having recently moved to Birchfield Harriers Partridge finished 3rd at the recent EDP Medio Maratón de Sevilla in 71:31.

Hayley Carruthers is always a name to watch over the half marathon distance the Birchfield Harrier set a best of 71:03 at the Great North Run in September. We are excited to see the rapidly improving Samantha Harrison race. Having set a PB of 71:43 at the recently Barcelona Half Marathon she will be a strong contender for one of the automatic spots on the team.

Steph Davis will also attract a lot of attention after her stunning 2:27:40 marathon in Valencia. She will be looking to make a serious revision to her half marathon best of 72:57 and will so be amongst the overall favourites.

Eleanor Whyman-Davis is another of our ones to watch for the race with a best of 72:34 we feel she could be considered a real contender for the team. In a strong field of British women the likes of Clara Evans, Rebecca Murray, Jenny Spink and Dani Nimmock will ensure it will be a highly competitive team on the plane to Poland.

 

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Strong British men’s field

Both the men’s and women’s competition will be tight. For the men Ross Millington, Mo Aadan and Jake Smith will line up amongst the favourites and they can expect strong challenges from the experience of Chris Thompson, Derek Hawkins and Andy Vernon. Millington will be running his first half since the 2017 NYC Half and many will be interest to see what shape the talent Stockport man is in.

We expect that Fast10 members Ollie Lockley and Jack Gray will be in the mix after both had excellent half marathon performances at Valencia Half in October. Another athlete who has been in fine form over shorter distances is Adam Clarke, with a 10km best of 28:38 set in December his speed will make him a contender.

Sub 2:15 marathon men Josh Griffiths, Robbie Simpson and Charlie Hulson will be looking to capitalise on their endurance and excellent 2019 performances and it is great to see Dewi Griffiths returning to regular racing.

Paulos Surafel is gradually building experience over long distances and is an exciting talent for the future, and another athlete who will look t make a serious revision to his current PB.

Jake Smith on his way to a PB in Paris

Editors note: Elite fields as publicised on race website – there may be additions or withdrawals.

Full elite men’s field

Kenenisa Bekele Ethiopia – 60.09
Lawrence Cherono Kenya – 60.46
Chris Thompson Great Britain – 61.00
Dewi Griffiths Great Britain – 61.33
Jake Smith Great Britain – 62.02
Marius Kipserem Kenya – 62.20
Mohamud Aadan Great Britain – 62.30
Ross Millington Great Britain – 62.40
Andy Vernon Great Britain – 62.46
Ollie Lockley Great Britain – 63.01
Jack Gray Great Britain – 63.15
Josh Griffiths Great Britain – 64.33
Daniel Studley Great Britain – 63.58
Derek Hawkins Great Britain – 63.53
Robbie Simpson Great Britain – 64.27
Derek Rae (T46) Great Britain – 68.22
Adam Clarke Great Britain – 68.35
Paulos Surafel Great Britain – 64.12
Charlie Hulson Great Britain – 64.28

Full elite women’s field

Lily Partridge Great Britain – 70:31
Hayley Carruthers Great Britain – 71.03
Samantha Harrison Great Britain – 71.43
Eleanor Davis Great Britain – 72.34
Clara Evans Great Britain – 72.49
Stephanie Davis Great Britain – 72.57
Rebecca Murray Great Britain – 72.59
Jenny Spink Great Britain – 73.01
Dani Nimmock Great Britain – 74.13

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The post Cherono & Bekele race as Brits battle for World Half qualification appeared first on Fast Running.

Born in Glasgow and now living in London working for and supported by Lazard Asset Management, Steph Davis ran her first half marathon in 2017 and first full marathon in 2018 (Berlin, 2:41:18).

Steph burst into the marathon-world limelight after running a 2:32:18 off the mass start at London Marathon in April 2019. Three months later she was announced as part of the scottishathletics Marathon Project targeting the Commonwealth Games, Birmingham in 2022.

At the time she was selected that seemed like a sensible target which would allow time for a promising young athlete to develop. However, with her fierce but fun work ethic and under the guidance of coach Philip Kissi at Clapham Chasers, Steph’s talent has developed at lightning speed.

She rounded out 2019 with a confident performance at Valencia Marathon of 2:27:40 which not only placed her fourth in the UK for the year and ninth British and third Scottish on the all-time list but also fast-tracked her competition plans by landing her an Olympic Qualifying time alongside Jess Piasecki, Charlotte Purdue and Steph Twell.

Steph Davis at 25km in Valencia
Photo: Tom Craggs

FastRunning: What were you most excited by in your running last year?

Steph Davis: The highlight has to be running the Olympic qualifying time (2:27) at Valencia. My training block had felt bumpier compared to London so I had mixed feelings about the shape I was in. It goes to show that if you have a goal never give up – anything is possible if you keep focus and as much consistency as you can.

FR: What are you most excited by looking to the year ahead? What are your key goals?

SD: My key goal is to stay healthy and injury free so that I can train to my full potential. I am really excited to run as part of the elite field at London marathon and at the Olympic trials. It will be my first female only race so it is quite scary too! The standard of female marathon running in the UK is red hot at the moment so it will be a good race for the spectators aswell.

FR: Why do you think the GB women had such a great year last year?

SD: It is incredible to see so many women in the UK close to the Olympic qualifying standard. I think when the competition is so high, it pushes us all to train and race harder. I hope that as women, we are inspired and motivated by each other, I certainly am.

FR: Who do you think is flying under the radar but destined to surprise everyone this year?

SD: There have been a lot of outstanding performances that it is difficult to pick one.

FR: What do you think about the decision not to preselect anyone for the Olympic team?

SD: For me, being ranked 4th in 2019 with only 3 Olympic spots available, the decision to not preselect anyone was a good one. It is all still open to complete for.

FR: Will you be running the London Marathon and if so, are you willing to share your goal for it?

SD: I am running London. For me, it will be like any other marathon – I’ll aim to work hard and continue my progression. Once I am further into my training block my coach and I will have a chat about my race plan and target.

FR: What shoes do you train in / what shoes do you race in?

SD: I do my everyday and recovery runs in Mizuno Wave Inspire. I’ve used this shoe for a while and like the support it offers when running slower.

For my training sessions (track and tempo), I wear Nike Zoom Fly. This isn’t too dissimilar to the Vapourfly Next %, which I currently use for races, so it allows me to practice in a shoe that has a similar shape to what I will race in. At the moment I am trying out some different shoes but there are so many out there it becomes a bit of a minefield.

FR: Are there any supporters that have helped you over the last year that you’d like to mention?

SD: There are too many to mention that I don’t want to get into trouble for missing anyone out. I couldn’t do the training without my coach and teammates so I owe a big shout out to them. My boyfriend and my family are super supportive (and patient with me!) during the training bouts and at all my races. It is definitely a team effort.

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The post Steph Davis chasing marathon greatness appeared first on Fast Running.

There’s a really exciting race coming up in April, a race within a race, but it’s got nothing to do with Eliud Kipchoge and Kenenisa Bekele. Gill Bland, and all of us at Fast Running, are getting really excited. 

A race gantry stands in the mist, the sun rising behind it. Figures can be seen dimly in the distance, getting closer, running. Fast.

Speeding towards us, silhouetted against the glow of a new dawn until out of the shadows a herd of women runners emerge, striding forward shoulder to shoulder arms pumping and heads held high, charging forward into the new decade.

That. That is what the women’s marathon scene feels like in the Great Britain as 2020 begins.

Role models for the masses

Gone are the days when there was one female marathoner we could look up to. Gone are the days when there were a couple, maybe three whose names we would recognise on the elite start list at London Marathon.

To those of us who love running 26.2, last year left us with score of fast ladies to look up to.

It was Charlotte Purdue, an established name, who first grabbed our attention in 2019 and gave a hint of what was to come when she threw down the gauntlet at London Marathon in April. Her 2:25:38 put her 3rd on the all-time list and bumped the profile of women’s marathoning up beyond that of superfans like me.

In the same race Tish Jones ran a 2:31:00 (3 min PB), Hayley Carruthers rinsed herself to get a 2:33:59 (near 3 min PB), getting global coverage in the process for THAT finish and Steph Davis of Clapham Chasers burst onto the scene running a 2:32:38 off the mass start. Not only were there some fun stories to cover, but the times were looking great too.

2019 continued apace with various European marathons bringing new runners to the fore. By the end of the year the top 50 was littered with names of women who seemed like they had popped up out of nowhere fully formed and running a storm.

However, a little bit of cyber stalking revealed that these were all women who had worked hard, put the hours in alongside jobs and families and injury rehab and all sorts of challenges to run breakthrough times that the rest of us dream of.

Photo: Leigh Quinnel

A controlled 2:30 from Twell

As well as the newbies, names that had been threatening to rise up for some time finally had their year. Steph Twell had said that her debut at Valenica 2018 (2:30) was ‘controlled’ – she backed up that claim by smashing the Olympic Qualifying time in Frankfurt in Sept.

It had looked like Purdue had her Olympic spot sewn up, with Twell being the main other contender until Jess Piasecki finally put those injury demons behind her and showed us what she had at Florence, bettering Charlotte’s time by 10s and throwing everything up in the air.

Right up until the last days of December the ladies were duking it out. In the end only a time north of 2:47:39 was enough to make the 2019 Top 50.

There was Rebecca Gentry, who kept us on the edge of our seats during her gutsy 2:37 New York performance, Jenny Spink who ran a 5min PB (2:31:14) with the most amazing grin on her face in Frankfurt, Ali Lavender (2:41:18 in Berlin) and duathlete Georgina Schwiening (2:35:22, Valencia) all piqued our interest as seeming new comers.

Elsey Davies had been waiting to show us her form for a while and finally knocked it out of the park with a 2:33:24 (Valencia) and Natasha Cockram shrugged off a nasty kick from a horse in race-week to smash out a 2:30:49 in Dublin. Oh, and then Steph Davis came back for another bash and only went and ran the Olympic standard. I could go on.

THAT finish from Hayley Carruthers Photo: Ian Walton for Virgin Money London Marathon

Not just fancy shoes

The post Is British women’s marathoning at it’s most competitive ever? appeared first on Fast Running.

After a stellar 2019 that saw Clapham Chaser Steph Davis run not one, but two absolutely fantastic marathons at London and Valencia, 2020 seems to have started in very much the same vein with a run that puts the Olympic marathon hopeful atop the weekly parkrun rankings.

With a 16:36 at Burgess parkrun, with 4th place Isabel Clark also running at the same event (17:39) it seems Davis has recovered well from Valencia and is in flying form in the build up to London, looking to build on 2:27:40 from December in Spain. We’re excited to see how she runs.

The fastest man chose the same venue as last weekend, Dulwich Park, but changed their name. It’s highly likely Andrew Fyfe is just a different runner who heard that to get a table at the post race cafe is a bit of a scrap, so arrived as quickly as possible. The Edinburgh AC Scot ran 14:45 and was our only runner to break 15 minutes this week. One might imagine a lot of the useful south London parkrunners were over at Parliament Hill for the cross country.

Considering both Davis and Fyfe are Scots, it seems appropriate we had the next runner actually running up in Scotland. Megan Davies, of Sale Harriers Manchester, ran 17:18 at Victoria Park in Glasgow and Power of 10 does tell us that Davies is a Scot herself. The San Francisco university student has more of a middle distance focus, but showed good endurance this weekend.

It’s no surprise that second place male was an Northern Irish athlete Tony McCambridge. A 15:19 run at Belfast Victoria was good enough to pip 3rd place Paul Whittaker by just one second and take the silver for parkrun this weekend.

It’s a relief to see the podiums being filled with Scottish and Northern Irish runners on a day that most English club runners were at their regional cross country championships. It shows that the importance of running up Parliament Hill as hard as you can and then charging though the mud hasn’t been lost. It’s an experience any cross country runner should experience at least once.

Third placed athletes were the talented Hannah Taunton, who clocked 17:22 at Exmouth parkrun and Paul Whittaker, who ran 15:20 at the quick loops at Southend parkrun, actually where my own parkrun best was set, albeit a minute slower than Paul.

Men’s top 10

1) parkrun: Dulwich
Andrew Fyfe, 14:45, Edinburgh AC
2) parkrun: Belfast Victoria
Tony McCambridge, 15:19
3) parkrun: Southend 
Paul Whittaker, 15:20, Southend-on-Sea AC
4) parkrun: Springburn, Glasgow
Ryan Thompson, 15:22, Cambuslang Harriers
5) parkrun: Birkenhead 
Joseph Morrison, 15:28, West Cheshire AC
6) parkrun: Dolgellau
Andrew Davies, 15:29, Stockport Harriers & AC
7=) parkrun: Worthing
Maxwell Dumbrell, 15:30
7=) parkrun: Bushy
Rowan Axe, 15:30, Cardiff AAC
9) parkrun: Brueton
Simon Nott, 15:32, Calne RC
10) parkrun: Telford
Dylan Gillett, 15:33, Telford AC

Women’s top 10

1) parkrun: Burgess
Stephanie Davis, 16:36, Clapham Chasers RC
2) parkrun: Victoria Park, Glasgow
Megan Davies, 17:18, Sale Harriers Manchester
3) parkrun: Exmouth
Hannah Taunton, 17:22, Taunton AC
4) parkrun: Burgess
Isabel Clark, 17:39, Serpentine RC
5) parkrun: Edinburgh
Anna Hedley, 17:41, Fife AC
6=) parkrun: Southampton 
Ellie Marie Monks, 17:46, Southampton AC
6=) parkrun: Newcastle
Charlotte Penfold, 17:46, North Shields Polytechnic AC
8) parkrun: Burnley
Annabel Ralph, 17:48, Accrington Road Runners
9) parkrun: Poole 
Kate Towerton, 17:50, Winchester and District AC
10) parkrun: Raphael
Emma Prideaux, 17:51, Billericay Striders RC

If you would like to run faster at parkrun, top tips to help runners of all abilities can be found here.

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The post 10 fastest UK parkrun times on 25th January (2020) appeared first on Fast Running.

This weekend was quite possibly one of the biggest weekends in the marathon calendar. Many athletes fled to Valencia in search of quick times, and in some cases, Olympic qualifying times, at one of the quickest marathons in the world and an IAAF Gold Label event, The Valencia Marathon.

The women’s race was stacked with competition as the GB women came out in full force. It was Clapham Chaser’s Steph Davis that had the race of her life, finishing a fantastic 13^th in the women’s elite field in 2:27:40. Davis smashed the Olympic qualifying time by nearly 2 minutes, putting herself in contention for those three marathon spots at Tokyo.

“’The focus was to have a fun run in the sun.” said the marathoner, “I felt in good shape and hoped to PB but did not expect to run that time at all! It’s still sinking in!’. Hopefully you’re still smiling for a long while with that one Steph. 

Steph Davis at 25km. Photo: Tom Craggs

Second brit across the line in 19^th place, after pulling out in Frankfurt, was Hayley Carruthers. Carruthers secured herself a marathon personal best of 2:32:42, improving on her time from the London Marathon back in April. Shortly behind Carruthers in 21^st position with a cracking time of 2:33:24 was Preston’s Eleanor Davis. After a strong year with personal bests over road 3k, 10k, and half marathon, Davis now adds a marathon best for the year.

Fourth Brit with yet another strong performance in Valencia was Elinor Kirk. Kirk secured herself a finishing time of 2:34:36, a PB by just under 2-minutes! With yet another impressive performance over the marathon distance was Georgina Schwiening (Cambridge Runners) with a time of 2:35:22, another PB of the day by over 2 minutes. 

Shortly behind Schwiening in 29^th place was Emma Mitchell with a strong 2:36:47. The Northern Irish athlete made her debut performance in the event and proved her strength after an impressive run at the Valencia Half in October. Unfortunately, after a tough year battling against injury, Lily Partridge pulled out at around the 25km mark after having gone through half way in 74:09. 

Fast running’s own marathoner, Gill Bland also headed to Valencia to complete the 26.2-mile distance. After a tough race, Bland had a strong finish and crossed the line in 2:55:31. 

Olympic qualifying time for Pollock

The men’s race did not disappoint either with some speedy marathon times secured. There was an outstanding run from Paul Pollock with an impressive Olympic qualifying time of 2:10:25. This will not be Pollock’s first Olympics after he finished 32^nd in Rio.

Liverpool athlete, Charlie Hulson had a strong debut performance crossing the line in 40^th position with a time of 2:14:23. Just 16 seconds behind Hulson was Andrew Davies with a lifetime best and UK40 record of 2:14:46, a 25 second best time.

Ben Johnson also gave a big PB performance after just missing sub 2:20 in London to finish with a time of 2:17:34. Other men contributing to the strong British and Irish field were Gary O’hanlon (2:20:07), Lloyd Biddell (2:20:49), Kev Quinn (2:22:12), Karl Welborn (2:22:57), Ben Shearer (2:23:23), Jo Turner (2:23:37), Paul Piper (2:23:43), George King (2:24:00), and Nick Bowker (2:24:16). 

Charlie Hulson with a fine debut. Credit: Tom Craggs

Barlow finishes 3rd in the 10km

The men’s world record fell in the Valencia 10km with Joshua Cheptegei running a stunning 26:38. Josh Grace (AFD) had a PB run, securing himself an 8^th place finish in a rapid time of 28:59! Tom Craggs coached athlete, Tracy Barlow had a powerful race, securing herself a 3^rd place finish over the 10k-distance with a time of 33:44. Some confusion with chips means we don’t have the full rankings just yet.

Fast 10k running at home too

At another 10k event, the Wesham 10k, athletes took to the roads in the North West over a slightly undulating course, running around the lanes of Salwick and Lea Town.

The winner of the entire event was Chris Livesey of Salford Harriers in 31:54, just eight seconds outside of his seasons best. Next was Wesham Road Runner, Robert Danson, in 32:03, followed by Matthew Laior (Ribble Valley Harriers) in 32:44. For the women it was Toni McIntosh (Ayr Seaforth) who ran a strong race to finish first, clocking 37:13. Second place went to Catherine Carrdus (Lytham St Annes) in 40:46 followed by Sue Coulthurst.

Wesham 10km. Credit: Dave Biggs

At another of the Sri Chimnoy London Marathon Events race was the Grizzly Bear 10k. These races provide yet another opportunity for athletes in search of pure racing without all the added extras. Podium finishers are presented with a piece of fruit and cereal bar, proving it is all about the element of racing in a fast environment.

All of the top three women came across the road in under 39 minutes. The winning fruit went to Rebecca Piggott of London Heathside who ran a solid 36:19, a 25-second personal best. Second female home in a time of 38:08 was Matilde Lomba and in third was Evangelista Divetain (London Heathside) in 38:20. 

In the men’s race it was Alix Ramsie who landed himself the top place on the podium. Ramsie of South London Harriers crossed the line in 32:28 in what was a close race. Only 4 seconds later, Tom Goulding of Birtley AC finished the race. It was Serpentine Andrea Fraquelli who rounded off the men’s podium with a finishing time of 32:36. Impressive running! 

British Ultra running in good health

Over the much larger 100km distance, the 100km Ultra Trail Cape Town race occurred. Salomon runner Beth Pascall secured herself an impressive win with an even more impressive top 10 overall finish. A sub 11 hour finish, less than an hour behind US men’s winner Cody Reed, meant a course record for the medic, who caps off an excellent 2019 that included top five positions at Western States and the UTMB. 

Over the impressive 300km distance, the Algarviana Ultra Trail race took place in Portugal. Paul Giblin was the well-deserved winner and beat the previous record by around three hours with a time of 38 hours and 6 minutes.

Paul Giblin training in the Swiss Alps in 2018. Photo: Robbie Britton

The modest athlete was taken outside of his mountainous comfort zone and tested with some flatter patches of running but did not disappoint. Despite stomach problems early on he kept relaxed and had an incredible race. 

It was Scotland-based athlete, Patricia De Carvalho, who was the winner of the women’s race in her 3^rd time doing the event. Carvalho finished in a time of 64 hours 47 minutes.

High standards at Podium 5k as usual

Over the shorter, but speedier 5k distance was the Podium 5k road race. The podium race’s offer the perfect, true racing experience without the added frills, but with a tried and tested fast course. The podium 5k race series is the perfect opportunity for athletes to test their fitness and chase after PB times.

This weekend’s runners were faced with chilly, yet speedy conditions. It was Andy Smith who was first male across the line in a rapid 14:52 for Pudsey & Bramley AC. In a close finish it was Matthew Crehan (St Helens & Sutton) who landed the silver medal in 14:54. Preston Harriers’ Kian Davis took the bronze medal position in 15:08. 

Ciara Mageean (Team NB Mcr), European Bronze medalist in 2016 and 2019, did the women proud with a speedy, sub-16, 15:48 finishing time. The second female finisher with a time of 16:52 from Manchester Harriers was Rachael Franklin. Completing the top three women was Leeds City’s Alice Leake in 17:25. 

Andy Smith & Ciara Meagaan Photo: Podium 5k Twitter.

Also over the 5km distance was the Croft Circuit 5km. It was North Belfast Harrier’s Andrew Milligan who was the first male to cross the line in 15:06. The U23 athlete ran himself to an impressive 21 second personal best. Closely behind Milligan in 15:20 was Joe Armstrong of Morpeth Harriers & AC, another U23 athlete. Completing the top 3 male finishing positions was David Green in an extremely close 15:23. The race boasted a total of 6 men running under 16-minutes.

Following on from an impressive win for England at the Rennes 10k last month, Danielle Hodgkinson of Wallsend ran a cracking 16.30 for a first-place finish for the women and an incredible 11^th overall. Second woman across the finish line was Gateshead Harriers & AC’s Gillian Manford in 18:08 followed by Georgia Campbell in 18:09. A very close race! 

73rd year for Victory 5 miler

In its 73^rd year was the Victory 5-mile race. Matt Bergin landed himself the win in a time of 23:40, a close 5-seconds outside of his personal best. In second place was U20 athlete, Henry McLuckie with a time of 24:18 for his first ever 5-mile race. Third place was secured by Joe Wade in 24:31. 

The winner for the women was Tonbridge AC’s Lucy Reid. Reid matched her personal best of 27:05 exactly. Following shortly was Maisie Trafford of Arena 80 in 27:35. The final woman on the podium was AFD’s Emily Wicks in 28:02 who came 65^th in the World Cross Country Championships back in 2013. 

Over the 5-mile distance again, but this time through the mud, was the Midlands 5-mile cross country championships. It was Gemma Steel who took home gold for the women. We’ll include more results if we can find them.

Festive marathoning in Nottingham

Also over the marathon distance this weekend, was the Nottingham Christmas Marathon. The overall win went to Loughborough Student, James Ford, in a finishing time of 2:42:37. The second finisher was Ben Harris of Retford AC in 2:44:16.

An impressive third overall and first woman was Johanna O’Regan of St Neots Riverside Runners in 2:45:24, just 3-minutes outside of her lifetime best set earlier this year in Manchester. It was fellow clubmate Caroline Brooks who secured herself the silver woman’s medal in 2:49:32, in a solid 5^th place overall. 

As part of the same event was the shorter distance 10k race. Euan Wilson ran an impressive race, finishing in a time of 33:07 for first place. 1^st female finisher, in third place overall was Johanna Gurney. Gurney stopped the clock on 34:24. 

The RunThrough Lee Valley Velo Park Race saw athletes race over various distances including that of 10-miles. Victory for the men went to Stephen Fabes in 57:44 and it was Sally Svenlen who ran herself to the top of the women’s podium in 1:12:09. In the half marathon event, Ben Toye secured himself the gold medal in 1:15:41 whereas Katie Brown obtained the woman’s first-place finishing position in 1:23:52. 

There were some extremely noteworthy performances in the mud as well as on the road. In the Alton Sports Hampshire Cross Country League, Aldershot & Farnham District AC dominated the men’s race, however it was Reading AC that secured the women’s team gold. Jess Gibbon ran a storming race to secure herself the position at the top of the podium with a 32-second lead followed by AFD’s own Steph Twell. Third through the mud was Annabel Gummow of Winchester. The men’s results are yet to be uploaded. 

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The post 10k WR & marathoners shine in the sun in Valencia – weekend roundup appeared first on Fast Running.