Press Report 20th February 2024  

Feb 202024
 

British Masters Indoor Championships
Lee Valley
17/02/2024

After so many issues with injuries over the season, Krystle Balogun went into last weekend’s British Masters wanting to race well, but without too many expectations..

Competing in the 200m Krystle made an explosive start to the race, always being in contention of a medal, and not only did she exceed all her expectations but she finished with a silver medal and a personal best time of 26:48.

Speaking afterwards Krystle was eager to dedicate her run to former club President and long serving club member  NICOLA HOPKINSON who sadly lost her long battle with cancer last week.

Krystle said 

 “In the 10 years I’ve been in the club, she was a lovely kind hearted person, who really dedicated a lot of her time to the club, organizing races, collecting subscriptions, being a race Official in so many Southern leagues and events, and training for marathons. I have fond memories of running in Cross Country races with her in the women’s team, in relays and Elvis league runs, before transitioning from middle distance to eventually sprints.

 

Pulse Under the Lights 5k
Battersea Park
16/02/2024

3 Ilford Athletes made their way across town to Battersea Park to compete in the Pulse Under the Lights 5k last Friday.
First up was Alex Richards, who continued his rich vein with a great run to take first place in the 2nd wave of runners.  His time, very impressive 14.52, was not only a 46 second pb, but is the 5th fastest ever, by an Ilford athlete, for a road 5k.

Mungo Prior who as been suffering with both injury and illness recently had a solid comeback run with a time of 15.45

Jordan Hinds was in a high quality women’s elite race. Jordan has struggled a bit this winter with a hip injury which has affected her track work, but on the road she is flying and produced a very good run, knocking 4 seconds off her pb in clocking 18.38. 
This moves her up to 7th fastest on the Ilford ladies all time 5k road list.

  Press Report 12th February 2024  

Feb 122024
 

ESSEX CROSS-COUNTRY LEAGUE
Hainault Forest
Saturday 12 February

 

The final round of this winter’s Essex Cross-Country League was staged by Ilford AC over a very muddy course at Hainault Forest, The club had a very good turnout of runners participating in this round throughout the age groups.

First race of the day was the U13 boys and girls race, which was over a distance of approx. 3k.

Barney Perkins ran a gutsy 13:26 for 20th place backed up just 12 seconds and 3 places later by Khalif Ali.
For the girls, Hawaa Patel ran 17:22 for 24th female place.

Next up was the U15 boys on an approx. 4k.
Sam Horsley, who last week ran a brilliant 7th place in the South of England Championships, ran another great performance to claim 2nd place in a time of 14:07. Aron Berhe was next in 18th place in 16:07, closely followed 2 places later by Ryder Islam in 16:25. Luke Thake came in 33rd in 19:39 with Jayden-Kyle McDermott closing the squad in 37th in 20:34

The next race was the U17 Men and Women, held over a 7k course.
Aaron Hick led the Men home in 10th place for 20:29 followed just one place later by Samuel Crane in 20:49.
James Thake completed the Men’s team, who finished 4th on the day in a time of 23:17 for 21st place.
Leila Louder, making her cross country debut on probably the hardest course of the season, was Ilfords only female in the race, but she ran an impressive 30:00 for 10th place in the women’s category.

Penultimate race of the day was the Senior women’s race, again held over an approx. 7k course.

The ladies were led home by Jordan Hinds, who has had a good Cross country season, in 11th place in a time of 26 mins 52 secs.
Next home was Anna Crawley in 29 mins 42 secs for 37th and Carlie Qirem in 40th  with 30 mins 01 secs. The scoring team was completed by Alison Sale with 31 mins 18 secs for 52nd  spot  and 3rd in the F55 age category on the day. 
Dianne Crisp in 83rd place in a time of 36:11 earned her 2nd place in the W60 Category on the day.
The other Ilford ladies in action were:  Pauline Tester 66th 33 mins.17 secs  Frieda Keane 101st  41 mins.02 secs Julia Galea 104th  42 mins.12 secs and Launa Broadley 109th 46 mins.31 secs

The senior men raced over 8 km and first home for Ilford in their squad of 18 runners was Alex Richards, who is in top form at present, in 2nd place in 27 mins 47 secs.
Rohan Edwards was next home in 33rd with 31 mins 06 specs and Malcolm Muir 53rd in 32 mins 57 secs . Josh Adler took 60th spot in 33 mins 48 secs and Dylan Harrod placed 62nd with 33.53 secs. 
Steve Philcox closed the scoring team in 34 mins 37 secs for 75th and 3rd in the m55 age group in this race.

Further down the field Andy Catton finished as 2nd in the M70 category in 188th place in 44 mins 01 secs.

The rest of the Ilford team in action were: Seb Parris 86th  35 mins13 secs  Dan Holeyman 87th  35 mins14 secs  Akwasi Nkumah 98th  35 mins 50 secs  Dave Thomas 127th  37 mins.39 secs Neil Crisp 129th 37 mins 45 secs Steve Horsley 163rd  41 mins.24 secs  Tarik Qirem 174th  42 mins 17 secs  Bradley Brown 183rd  42 mins 57 secs  Steve Lacey 201st  45 mins.58 secs and  Jim Tilbrook 223rd  53 mins 46 secs

In the match Ilford ladies had a good day finishing 7th and that placed them 10th in league and secured their division 1 status next year.
The men were also 7th in this match and finished in that place in division 1 this season.

Individually for the series there were 1st place age category awards  for  Steve Philcox  (m55) and Andy Catton (M70) and husband and wife Neil and Dianne Crisp both were placed 2nd in their respective 60 age category

  Press Report 6th February 2024  

Feb 062024
 

CHINGFORD LEAGUE
Victoria Park
Saturday 3rd February

SENIORS

The 6th and penultimate round of this season’s Chingford League was held at the traditional February venue of Victoria Park. The race was over 5 miles on a flat, fast figure of eight circuit of the park and Ilford AC had a large squad of 21 in action.

The Ilford Ladies race in division 2 of the league and are currently challenging for promotion to the top league.
Jordan Hinds ran a new personal best time of 32 mins 09 secs for 4th in the second tier and there was also a new best time for Anna Crawley in 7th spot with 33 mins 47 secs. Carlie Qirem placed 15th in 35 mins 32 secs with Pauline Tester recording 38 mins 52 secs for 32nd.
Alison Sale came home 35th in 39 mins 26 secs and Mandy Reid closed the scorers in 46th in 43 mins 1 secs.
There was an unexpected personal best for Launa Broadley of 47 mins 54 secs after a fine run in 63rd.
Also in action for the ladies were: Dianne Crisp (55th) Frieda Keane (66th ) and Julia Galea (68th)

In the match Ilford finished 4th team and with just the relay to go are placed 3rd ,1pt behind Mornington Chasers. The fixture will decide which club is promoted to division one with Barnet for next season

Best of the 11 Ilford men in action was Danny Holeyman in 20th in 30 mins 34 secs with Josh Adler recording 31 mins 03 secs one place behind on his distance debut. Next in with a new best time for the distance was Steve Chissell in 33 mins 27 secs for 31st, and Neil Crisp placed 34th in 33 mins 41 secs. Tarik Qirem was another racing the distance for the first time finishing in 34 mins 02 secs for 36th. The last scoring runner for the club was Bradley Brown in 48th with 36 mins 02 secs. 

There were two other runners recording new personal bests for 5 miles; Nick West with 36 mins 06 secs and Sean Costello in 39 mins 51 secs, whilst Jim Tilbrook ran his best over the distance for many years, finishing in 77th place in a time of 40 mins 18 seconds

Also in action were: Craig Livermore (56th) Steve Crane (66th ) and Ed Skinner (83rd )

Like the ladies the Ilford men were 4th in their match and as they are currently 2nd in the division will be pushing for promotion at next month’s relays on Wanstead Flats.

JUNIORS

Ilford AC had14 young athletes at the Chingford league race.

In the U13 boys race there was another 1st place for Barney Perkins in a time of 12:29, a victory that confirmed him as a series winner in the competition.
 Teammate Khalif Ali ran an excellent race in 12.40m for a terrific 3rd place on the day and an overall 4th place in the Chingford league series.
 Elias Furreedan was the next Ilford athlete to finish in a  best time of 14.28m and 12th position.
 Making his Ilford debut and finishing in 15th position was Daniel Guiba in a time of 15.32m.

For the U13 girls Hawaa Patel, making her debut, ran a strong race and with a fast finish managed to seal an impressive 4th place in a time of 15.07.

Ryder Islam led home the U15 boys team finishing in 2nd place in a time of 14.39m. Backing up his teammate in 5th position was Aron Berhe finishing in 15.05m.
 3rd U15 athlete was ever improving Luke Thake in a good time of 18.27m
 Two U15 athletes were making their debuts in this competition and both ran very well.
 Ethan Guiba finished 19th  position in 20.24m and Adrian Sematimba  ran a steady 21.00m finishing in 20th place.

In the U15 girls race debutant Diya Kaur ran a consistent and strong race to finish in 6th place with a time of 21.10m.

In the U17 boys’ race there was an impressive victory for Samuel Crane in 13:28 whilst Aaron Hick finished 4th in 15:42

Leila Lauder was Ilford’s sole competitor in the U17 girls race and had an impressive victory in a time of 18.24m, an impressive improvement on last years’ time of 18.45m.

CHICHESTER 10km incorporating the BRITISH MASTERS 10km CHAMPIONSHIP
Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit
Sunday 4th February

The British Masters 10km Championships took place in Sussex as part of the Chichester 10km. This race has a large strong field of over 1000 of which 241 were entered in the various age categories of the British Masters.
The race started with a lap of the Goodwood Motor Racing circuit, before going out onto the nearby country lanes to finish back at the start\finish line on the circuit.
On a dull overcast morning Joel Denning was best of the 4 Ilford AC athletes in action coming home in 40 mins 32 secs for 18th in the M45 group, while Joanne Reeves crossed the line in 45 mins precisely to place 9th in the F45 category.
Highest placed in the age group for the club was Andy Catton in 8th in the M70s with 46 mins 17 secs and Rob Sargent completed the squad in 13th in the M65 group with 58 mins 30 secs.

The men combined as a M45 composite team and placed 5th in that category.

 

SOUTH OF ENGLAND INDOORS

Alex Richards continued with his impressive indoor form at the South of England champs at Lee Valley last weekend

Prior to his race in the London Champs the previous week, his pb stood at 1.58, which he reduced to 1.56.84

In the Southern Champs, he went even better. There were 3 heats and qualification was tough with only winners guaranteed to reach the final. Alex was drawn in heat 1 and made sure of his place in the final by winning his heat in an indoor pb time of 1.55.24

The final was held 3 hours later and included some sub 1.50 athletes. The pace was quick from the off, but Alex was in a great position around the tight indoor bends and was in either 3rd or 4th position to start.

Jack Higgins from Tonbridge won the race in 1.49.17, but Alex ran great 3rd and 4th laps, to not only gain 3rd, but set another pb of 1.53.23. If he can achieve a similar time outdoors he will be amongst the top 10 fastest ever Ilford athletes over 800m

RYDE 10 MILES
Isle of Wight

In a field of over 500 runners Ilford stalwart Malcolm Muir gave his usual gutsy performance to finish an impressive 20th place in a time of 1 hr 3 mins 04 secs, a time that placed him 2nd M45 on the day

  Press Report 30th January 2024  

Jan 302024
 

SOUTH OF ENGLAND CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Beckenham Place Park
Saturday 28 January

Ilford AC sent a small team to this yearly championship again held at Beckenham Place Park  in South London over a course which featured grassland, trail, mud and hills.

 

The under 15 boys were represented by Sam Horsley and Ryder Islam. This was Sam’s first area championship.
He started strongly in the front pack and held his position well finishing in a fantastic 7th place. He now looks forward to upcoming competitions where he will compete for the county.
Ryder had a strong race taking 5 positions in the last 100m to finish in 95th place, his first top 100 placing in area champs.

The club had one competitor in the U17 men’s 6k. Samuel Crane started strongly but struggled in the last 2 kilometres to finish in 114th place.

Jordan Hinds was next up in her first Southern Championships as a senior woman. She went off hard and kept going well to finish in a respectable 121st place in 32 mins 56 secs over the 8k course.

Finally we had 5 stalwarts in the 15 kilometre men’s race.
The course was changed this year for the men’s race and included a long hill towards the back of the park which the men had to negotiate twice.
Malcolm Muir led home the Ilford squad with his usual gritty performance in 289th spot in a large field in 55 mins 18 secs for the race. Next over the line was Seb Parris in 420th in 59 mins 41 secs and following on was Danny Holeyman with 63 mins 12 secs for 507th.

Steve Chissel unfortunately missed the start but finished the course strongly in just under 70 minutes in 580th place. Jim Tilbrook had a really strong run on the longest cross country championship in the calendar placing 717th in just over 85 minutes. 


ESSEX SCHOOLS CHAMPS
Benfleet

In the Essex schools champs held at Benfleet last weekend Ilford AC had 7 runners , representing their respective Borough

In the Intermediate race Ilford had 6 athletes across 4 separate boroughs

Best performance of the day was Sam Horsley. Sam still has a year left in the age group but still took the lead from the very start of the race. He continued to push on for the duration of the race and came a brilliant 7th

Essex schools picked the first 6 positions to represent Essex in the prestigious English schools. However Sam has another opportunity to win a spot in the team as a further 2 spots are given in a subsequent race in the next week or so.

Good performances also from Aaron Hick in 25th ,Samuel crane in 33rd and Ryder Islam in 38th

Aron Berhe and James Thake both finished strong to be in the top 45 athletes

In the senior boys race Ronan Edwards ran very well to come a very creditable 11th position


INDOOR 

Earlier in the week Alex Richards ran a  terrific indoor 800m last week at Lee Valley
His time of 1:56.84 was a PB beating his outdoor time.

  Press Report 23rd January 2024  

Jan 232024
 

CHINGFORD LEAGUE
Epping Forest
Saturday 20th January

The latest match in the Chingford League took place in Epping Forest on Saturday. 

First race of the day was the U13 race, and our boys continue to impress in the series.

Barney Perkins continued his excellent form of late with a first place in a time of 07 mins 45 secs over the 2km course.
Barney was closely followed and supported by Khalif Ali in 6th place in a time of 8.10.

Elias Furreedan continued his improvement this season with another great performance in 43rd position in a time of 9.54.

Both Barney and Khalif have great opportunities to finish in the top 3 of this Season’s competition at the final race on February 3rd.

Luke Thake had a really impressive race in the U15 competition, and produced a season best performance over a very tough and testing 5km course, finishing in 10th position, in his category  in an impressive time of 24.08

The course for the senior race was a 2 lap 8km event with 2 hills to climb on each lap over ground still frozen and rutted which made the going tough for the runners. Ilford AC turned out full teams in both the mens and ladies division 2 league match.

The ladies team were led home by Alison Sale in 9th spot and 1st in F50 category in 41 mins 48  mins, with Carlie Qirem 1 place and 1 second behind.
Pauline Tester was next home in 23rd spot with 51 mins 23 secs, and Mandy Reid recorded 53 mins 38 secs for 29th.
Julia Galea placed 29th in 59:43, Frieda Keane 39th in 1:00:44 and Launa Broadley completed the squad in 42nd in 1:06:59. In the division two match the Ilford ladies claimed 2nd place and are 3rd overall for the season and with 2 more fixtures to come are in the mix for promotion to the top league.

The men’s event had a number of teams with strong turn outs in action. The Ilford challenge was led by the inform Steve Chissel placing 22nd and 2nd in the M50 age category in 40 mins 18 secs. Joel Denning battled through the field to come home 26th in 41 mins 14 secs while Bradley Brown was 37th with 43 mins 51 secs. Ray Dzikowski was 36th in 44 mins 15 secs and Tarik Qirem 46th with 45 mins 49 secs. 
Andy Catton finished in 49th and 1st in the M70 age category in a time of 46 mins 14 secs. 

The team was completed by Jim Tilbrook in 74th with 1:11:02, compounded by the fact he started 10 minutes late due to getting lost on his way to the start line. 

In the match the Ilford men finished 6th but remain in 3rd place in division 2.


Benfleet 15
Sunday 21st Jan

Ilford AC fielded 3 runners in the Benfleet 15 held at Hadleigh Downs on Sunday.

The course is a very challenging multi terrain course comprising hard sections of the Canvey Island sea wall contrasting with marshland and the undulating Hadleigh downs.

Starting downhill and finishing on a mile long big climb, the race is not for the faint hearted.
This year nearly 800 participants took on the challenge

Leading the way for the club was Danny Holeyman, finishing in 52nd place, which also earned him a 2nd place in the M50 Category, in a time of  1 hr 53 mins 05 specs.
Just 10 places behind, in a time of 1 hr 54 mins 58 secs was Seb Parris.
Completing the trio was Diarmuid Mac Donnell in 2 hrs 16 mins 14 secs for 249th place

The overall race record is still held by Ilford’s Amin KoiKai who clocked 1.22.17 in the 6th running of the race back in 1996, a time that no runner has recently been able to even approach.