Race Reports 21 April–27 April

Here it is — the BIG marathon weekend of the year in the U.K. In the South, the London Marathon boasted a brand new total of 56,640 finishers, making the world record in its 45th edition. In the North, Manchester Marathon clocked up over 36,000 finishers on a gorgeous day that showcased the city’s spirit. All told, 90,000 runners are said to have run a marathon in the U.K. on Sunday. That’s a success story all its own, but you’re here to read about how your club mates got on. Let’s get to it!

Kent Youth Athletics League, Julie Rose Stadium – 26 April

The final fixture of the KYAL took place on Saturday in Ashford. While we don’t yet have the final results tally, we do have a shout-out from Julie Slingsby to the coaching team. Take it away, Julie.

I wanted to do a shout out for Pat, Lisa and the junior team, who did a fantastic job on Saturday (and I’m sure weeks of planning). It was the Kent Youth Athletics League competition at the Julie Rose stadium. There was a super turn out of junior athletes competing across track and field, both under 13s and 15s.

We had some fabulous wins, and incredible efforts from all athletes.

Thanks for all you do, coaches!

Guardamar Half Marathon, Guardamar del Segura, Spain – 27 April

The Mediterranean isn’t just for sipping and sunning. It’s also a premium location for runners looking for gorgeous views and challenging getaways. Liz Solaru certainly got both where she netted a 10-minute PB in a time of 1:56:36. She won second in her category earning a podium finish! Way to represent, Liz.

Manchester Marathon, Manchester – 27 April

One of the fastest growing marathons in Europe, Manchester may be second in size to its southern cousin but is first in the hearts of many marathoners for its wide avenues and big community spirit all along the route. First home for Folkestone was Mens Captain Nick Steele who went sub-3 in a blazing 2:48:55. Next up was Jason King in 4:27, and then Debbie Parmenter in 4:38. Outstanding running, each of you!

Name	Bib	Category	Chip time
Nick Steele	813	M40	02:48:55
Jason King	8125	M45	04:27:41
Deborah Parmenter	33109	F60	04:38:10

London Marathon, The Capital – 28 April

The Big One – London played host to over twenty of FRAC’s finest, not to mention the small army of supporters who trekked to London to cure their marathon fever. Spectators were treated to performances from winners Sebastian Sawe (2:02:27) and Tigst Assefa (2:15:50), Eilish McColgan’s (2:24:25) and Alex Yee’s (2:11:08) marathon debuts, and thousands of inspiring efforts by individuals from across the globe. Our own club runners stood out for some serious personal gains. Reported as received and in no particular order, they are:

• James Johnson – PB of 17m
• Catherine O’Conner – PB of 3m
• Autumn Richardson – PB of 10m
• Helen Webb – PB of 8m
• Jenny “Twiggy” Heathfield completed her second marathon in two weeks

Another notable achievement is the only club runner to take on the Reverse London Marathon. It is what it sounds like. I’ll let Kevin Whitby tell the tale.

Tough. 2am start, no closed roads, no water stops (unless the 24 hour convenience store guy we startled at 5am counts), self navigating through canary wharf and a 5 mile uphill slog to Blackheath. All things considered very pleased with 4:37:46.

Sounds more survival challenge than a race, Kevin. Well done for getting through and earning that medal.

These stories are the results of all of that training, the encouragement, early mornings, cold nights, the agonies and even injuries, and finally, the event itself. It’s not about medals (those are nice), and it’s not about winning (comparing ourselves to others is the opposite of what we do) — it’s about personal achievement. We do it to remind ourselves that we have the choice to be healthy, that happiness is a journey, and that occasionally that gets distilled into a moment when we know we did all we could, and that it was good.

Place (Overall)	Name	Category	Finish Time
561	Radcliffe, Daniel (GBR)	18-39	02:38:39
1780	Gurung, Prakash (GBR)	45-49	02:52:40
1906	Collier, Robert (GBR)	50-54	02:53:47
3250	Klidzia, Krzysztof (GBR)	55-59	03:02:07
3141	Noble, Andrew (GBR)	60-64	03:01:16
4506	Jessen, Torben (DEN)	60-64	03:10:20
5052	Crew, Darren (GBR)	55-59	03:13:32
6177	Gurung, Manda (GBR)	40-44	03:19:04
8228	Johnson, James (GBR)	18-39	03:28:19
8869	O’Connor, Catherine (GBR)	55-59	03:30:45
10304	Goodwin, Nicola (GBR)	45-49	03:36:15
25852	Heathfield, Jenny (GBR)	40-44	04:26:34
21779	Vousden, Ian (GBR)	45-49	04:13:26
23272	Larnder, Karla (GBR)	50-54	04:18:16
22511	Brazier, Marie (GBR)	45-49	04:15:49
28546	Johnson, Ray (GBR)	60-64	04:34:49
29880	Hadlow, Andy (GBR)	65-69	04:39:03
30112	Burvill, Simon (GBR)	40-44	04:39:50
32776	Curtis, Caroline (GBR)	55-59	04:48:30
30587	Fox, Jamie (GBR)	18-39	04:41:22
30335	Taylor, Lesley (GBR)	60-64	04:40:33
38035	Hannay, Paul (GBR)	40-44	05:05:43
45429	Richardson, Autumn (GBR)	18-39	05:37:34
12437	Webb, Helen (GBR)	45-49	03:43:37

Boka Bay Trail, Montenegro – 28 April

Now for something completely different! Adam Ward took on 33km of trail at Boka Kotorska, Montenegro. The Boka Bay Trail comprises four different courses ranging from 17km to 83km. Adam struck out for a faster race on the 33km blue course. Here’s his report from the ground:

Longest race I’ve done time wise. Now it’s time to enjoy my holiday 😂

Never done a trail race before. 2km of ascent was a crazy introduction to it. The poles were a lifesaver.  10/10 would suffer through it again. 

Fabulous effort, Adam. Looking at photos, you may have had the most picturesque race of anyone in the club this week.

parkrun

Folkestone parkrun

Despite the massive marathon weekend, parkrun was still buzzing. The club got out and got moving with the community, and that included some runners fresh off of some very recent marathons. This event also kicked off the first round of the parkrun Challenge Cup with Brian Davis and Dan McCarthy facing off in the A Cup.

Position	Parkrunner	Time
2	Simon RAMSAY	00:18:11
6	Ian MERRICK	00:19:08
9	Thomas MURRAY	00:19:36
11	Derek MATCHAM	00:19:44
14	Dan MCCARTHY	00:20:21
15	Tristan BRUCE	00:20:22
17	Darren PHILIP	00:20:56
18	David WEEKES	00:20:57
26	Stephen DEEMING	00:21:34
45	Hazel MILLARD	00:22:32
47	David GILLETT	00:22:34
61	Simon COFFEY	00:23:13
69	Prakash GURUNG	00:23:34
78	Jonathan ARANA-MORTON	00:24:06
79	Karl LETCHFORD	00:24:08
85	Miles GAWTHORP	00:24:33
125	Brian AUSTIN	00:25:50
126	Rob HILL	00:25:50
134	John O’HARA	00:26:02
137	Trevor DEVOOGHT	00:26:08
138	Joshua PINE	00:26:08
145	Henry AXON	00:26:22
151	Louisa EEDE	00:26:31
152	Phil HAINES	00:26:32
161	David BOTTING	00:26:42
177	Deirdre COOMBS	00:27:14
180	Jonathan DRINKWATER	00:27:19
182	Anna THOMSEN	00:27:24
183	Amy AXON	00:27:25
197	Sonia MARKWELL	00:27:55
210	Alan RANDALL	00:28:38
226	Amie HOWARD	00:29:28
232	Nikki GOODWIN	00:29:40
237	Brian DAVIS	00:29:53
282	Christopher WOOLGAR	00:31:33
281	Julie GIBBS	00:31:33
288	Rachel YORKE	00:31:58
296	Malcolm GIBBS	00:32:32
315	Catherine-Anne CURTIS	00:33:49
325	Lauren HART	00:35:23
363	Helen MERRICK	00:43:11
395	Kate LANCEFIELD	01:00:16

Roundshaw Downs parkrun

Position	Parkrunner	Time
9	Deborah JEFFERY	00:19:57

Ashford parkrun

Position	Parkrunner	Time
2	Guy SLINGSBY	00:17:18
53	Andrew NOBLE	00:23:36
142	Diane PARSONS	00:27:43
240	Martin SALMON	00:31:45

Canterbury parkrun

Position	Parkrunner	Time
4	James BARNEY	00:20:14
35	Anthony SCOTT	00:25:40

Dover Waterfront parkrun

Position	Parkrunner	Time
4	Andrew FLETCHER	00:18:44
5	Elliot CHAPMAN-JONES	00:18:52
18	James SPRINGETT	00:21:11
22	Luke HICKS	00:22:10
35	Layla DMONTE	00:24:11

Thames Path parkrun, Woolwich

Position	Parkrunner	Time
95	Kate EVANS	00:24:46