Podium & Mud – Weekend Round Up

Happy New Year! The first Weekend Round Up of 2025 features plenty of fast and competitive racing; hopefully this continues throughout the year. James Rhodes brings you the highlights of the racing action. 

The racing year ended with a bang, thanks to the Podium NYE 5k at Battersea Park. The event, sponsored by Mizuno, saw a new course trialled in the always-fast park, which incorporated the athletics track.

Multiple athletes ended the year with a PB. They included elite women’s race winner Revee Walcott-Nolan, who improved her best to 15:39. From the outset, her and steeplechase specialist Poppy Tank had developed a gap on the rest of the field, which was never relinquished. Poppy stayed with Revee until the closing kilometre and was rewarded with a 15:44 PB.

In third, Mia Waldmann had one of the best races of her career, clocking 15:52. Mia missed much of 2024, only racing at the European Cross Country Championships and associated trials. Her time is a step-change improvement from her previous PB of 17:19, set in 2019, and also her track best (16:59).

Jess Gibbon finished fourth (15:58) and Herne Hill Harrier’s Lucy Jones (16:12 PB) fifth. There were PBs also for Bea Wood (16:20) and Eilish Flanagan (16:30) in sixth and seventh, with Gemma Hillier-Moses (16:33) eighth.

Close Finish

The men’s race saw a thrilling finish between Tomer Tarragano and Tom Keen, with the pair barely separable in the closing metres. Tomer just got the better of Tom, finishing in 13:49 to Tom’s 13:50. Both recorded PBs, as did third place finisher Joe Tuffin (13:52).

Abdinasir Elmi, who won the Friday Night Under the Lights 5 Mile earlier in the month, had led for all but the closing 500m. He ended up fourth with 13:54, a PB.

Behind, Jacob Allen (14:00) finished fifth, Liam Dee (14:06 PB) sixth and Ben Bradley (14:17) seventh. Dom Nolan continued his welcome return to racing with 14:18 for eighth.

Cross Country Championships

Various Cross Country Championships took place over the weekend. Some were cancelled due to the weather, and not all have results published at the time of writing.

The Surrey Championships returned to Lloyd Park in Croydon, which last hosted the event in 2023. Conditions on the course worsened as the day went on, with the senior men’s the last race and senior women’s the penultimate.

After making a decisive move on the third and final lap, Jack Kavanagh was a clear winner of the senior men’s race. He finished in 37:24, giving Holland Sports their first Surrey Championships title. The Aldershot duo of Joseph O’Connell (38:17) and Tom Chandler (38:19) completed the podium.

Belgrave Harriers packed well to secure the team title. Their six scorers were Phil Wicks (p6), Sam Gebreselassie (p7), James Hancock (p8), Ollie Garrod (p17), Harry Lawson (p23) and Jonathan Neville (p24).

Suzie Monk won the senior women’s race, completing the two-lap course in 28:43. The Guildford athlete finished eight seconds clear of Aldershot’s defending champion Georgia Bruinvels (28:51). After leading for much of the race, Leeds City’s Dominique Corradi finished third (28:59).

It was Suzie’s first title after eight appearances and a second-place finish in 2023. She also raced without victory in the junior categories, stretching back to 2009. A welcome win! She also led Guildford to a maiden team title, alongside Susannah Lecoutre (p6), Evie Warren (p8) and Eleanor Harrison (p18).

More Mud

Gloucester Park in Basildon hosted the Essex Championships, where Adam Hickey and Khai Mhlanga took senior victories.

Khai Mhlanga may be an infrequent cross-country runner, but she won her first senior county XC title. Best known for her 800m exploits, the Herts Phoenix athlete finished in 30:11. The podium was completed by Havering duo Kate O’Neil (30:20) and Lauren Reed (31:43) in second and third respectively.

The quartet of Kate, Lauren, Robyn Matson (p14) and Morgan Campbell (p18) secured the team title for Havering.

City of Southend’s Adam Hickey (39:24) was a clear winner of the senior men’s race, finishing 29 seconds ahead of the field. Callum Charleston (39:53) of Chelmsford took second and Havering’s James Stewart (41:00) third.

City of Southend won the team title, with Adam, Sam Norris (p5), Bob Sporle (p12), Dylan Schubert (p17), Rhys Gillard (p19) and Max Stapleton (p23).

Aldershot, Farnham & District athletes won the respective senior races at the Hampshire Championships. Theo Doran crossed the senior men’s finish ahead of Southampton’s Peter Hart and Rikki James. Kate Estlea-Morris finished seventeen seconds ahead of Southampton’s Sarah Winstone and Winchester’s Alex Lane in the senior women’s race.

Still Going

Taking place at Brands Hatch, the Kent Championships provided Tonbridge’s James Kingston and Rebecca Weston of Invicta East Kent with titles.

Rebecca was a clear winner of the senior women’s race over 8350m, finishing in 31:21. Blackheath & Bromley’s Naomi Kingston finished second (31:59) and Medway & Maidstone’s Charlotte Young (32:13) third. Blackheath & Bromley took the team honours from Invicta East Kent and Kent AC.

Tonbridge dominated the senior men’s race, with six of the top seven finishers. Ashford’s Louis Small, who took second, bucked the trend. He completed the 12km course in 38:57, with James Kingston finishing in 38:18. Alexander Howard completed the podium (39:30). Naturally, Tonbridge won the team title with Medway & Maidstone and Cambridge Harriers joining them on the podium.

Herts Phoenix’s Annabel Gummow and Brett Rushman won the respective senior races at the Hertfordshire & Middlesex Championships at Trent Park.

Further North

Over 40 seconds separated William Walker of Clayton-Le-Moor Harriers from the rest of the field at the Lancashire Championships. Ross Harrison of Blackburn Harriers and Samuel Perry of Northern (Isle of Man) completed the podium. Held at Whitton Park in Blackburn, it was the home club who took the team title led by second-placed Ross. Leeds City’s Ruth Jones won the senior women’s race. Tidy. Emma McColm of Preston Harriers finished second, leading Preston to the team title, with Keswick’s Nichola Jackson third.

Madeline Williams of Shrewsbury and Matthew Collins of Oswestry Olympians took titles at the Shropshire Championships. Titles at the Northamptonshire Championships went to Rugby & Northampton’s Luke Greer (33:59 over 10k) and Kettering’s Alice Bates (35:30 for 6.5k).

The Cheshire Championships saw Vale Royal’s Sarah Dufour-Jackson win the senior women’s title ahead of Katie Latham of Nantwich Running Club and Cheshire Dragon’s Carol Parsons. Hercules Wimbledon’s Daniel Cliffe won the senior men’s race after a close competition with Vale Royal’s Aaron Doyle. Just six seconds separated the pair. Fellow Vale Royal athlete Arun Dight finished third.

Vale Royal won both senior team titles.

Back on the Roads

Plenty of road races have been held over the past week. Wins at the Beith Harriers New Year 10k went to Kilmarnock Harrier Jonathon Downey (32:54) and Emily Renfrew of Bellahouston Harriers (38:51). Both recorded decisive wins. Downey finished over one minute ahead of the rest of the field and Renfrew almost two minutes clear of second-placed Katrine Kelly (40:45).

Callum Bowen Jones (32:35) and Maria Marsh (39:23) took wins at the Wymondham New Year’s Day 10k. It was a good day in the Bowser household at the Cleethorpes New Year’s Day 10k. Both Matthew (31:56) and Sophie (34:46) took victories.

Holly Archer (34:32) and Alex Melloy (32:26) were quickest at the Ely New Year’s Eve 10k. It was Archer’s fourth outing over the distance in 2024, having won European Indoor silver over 1500m in 2021.

Wins at the St Albans New Year’s Eve 10k went to Nick Harris-Fry (32:58) and Natasha White (36:50). Katie Vargeson (38:52) and Andrew Jakeman (32:47) finished first at the Marham Flyers New Year’s Eve 10k. Also on New Year’s Eve, Lauren Cooper (17:35) and Ben Reynolds (14:48) won the historic Nos Galen 5k.

Ending Indoors

Racing for the first time since June, Jake Wightman contested the Scottish 3000m Championships in Glasgow, where he clocked 7:44.94. Tom Keen (7:45.87) and Thomas Bridger (7:53.66) completed the top-three. In the women’s race, Sarah Calvert secured victory with a PB of 9:15.67, finishing ahead of Stefanie Tucker and Lynn McKenna.