Press Report 22nd August 2023  

Aug 222023
 

Southern Counties Veterans Athletics Club (SCVAC)

Ilford Victorious in the Vets League in their Centenary Season

The men’s team travelled to the Roger Bannister Stadium on the evening of Monday 14th August holding a 1 point lead over London Heathside into the final match.
Cheered on by Club President John Batchelor and cajoled into unfamiliar events by Team Manager, Henry Ricketts the team took to the track and field for the fourth and last time in the season.
Sam Malekout competing as V35 finished second in the 800m and first in javelin.
Danny Holeyman competed in the 3000m as the V35 athlete and placed sixth.
Chris Scott as V40 placed first in the 800m and fourth in the 200m.
Fabrizio Stefanoni’s sprint finish won the 800m and he also won the 3000m as V50.
Michael Osunsami covered the 200m in the V50 age group placing fifth.
James Lambden had a busy evening as V60 finishing fourth in the 800m, third in the 200m and second in the long jump.
Peter Whiting in the V60 shot and javelin finished fourth and third respectively.
Busiest of the evening was David Butler winning the 800m, third in the 200m, fifth shot, sixth javelin and third long jump all as V70. Coming down to V60 to race the 3000m he finished fifth.
Also competing as a non-scoring athlete in the 3000m, Diarmuid MacDonnell finished eleventh overall and third V50.
The relay team of Chris, Fab, Michael and Sam just missed out on third place for fourth in the 4 x 200m.
Finishing second on the evening to London Heathside meaning both teams were tied on 33 points over the four evenings it was going to come down to match points.
The final result confirmed that the Ilford team won the season by 505 points to 500 proving that every effort should be made to cover an event, because every point counts.
Congratulations to all the athletes who competed over the Vets season and a mention to the supporters and officials who helped over the matches

parkrun Takeover

Last Saturday, as part of Ilford AC’s Centenary year, the club staged a parkrun takeover at Valentines Park, where members were encouraged to wear our centenary tops and promote the club whilst also celebrating our rich history.
In our 100 years, Ilford AC are one of only a few clubs who have never changed our name or colours. Our running vests of white with 2 contrasting blue stripes are exactly the same as they were when we first competed as a club back in 1923.
As well as providing all the Marshals and officials on the day, Ilford also had 18 runners competing and were rewarded with the first 2 finishers, Sam Rahman in 17:56 and Joshua Adler in 19:28

London Summer 10k.

On Sunday the London Summer 10k returned to Regents Park.
The course is a 3 lap route covering the tarmac paths, with runners passing the boating Lake, Regents Park Broad Walk and London Zoo.
This year Ilford AC had only one the one competitor but Billy Green ran well to finish in a time of 54 mins 41 secs which placed him second in his age category 

MICHELIN 5km
Greenville South Carolina
Saturday 19 August 2023
 
While on a trip to the USA Ilford AC endurance coach Rob Sargent took the opportunity to run in the Michelin 5km in Greenville , South Carolina. The route was an up and back course from the Michelin complex over the rolling foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Rob ran a well judged race on a sunny warm morning to come home 253rd in a field of 568 finishers in 29mins 54 secs  to place 8th in the M65 category.

  Press Report 15th August 2023  

Aug 152023
 

Eastern Young Athletes League (EYAL)
Basildon

Ilford AC sent a team of 25 young athletes to the last EYAL match of the year in Basildon. 

Two athletes competed in the under 13 girl’s age group. Nayla Mills Ugoh competed in 100m, 200m and long jump and achieved 2 PBs in the 100m (14.7secs) and the 200m (31.8secs). Sofia Crane competed in the shot put and Long jump.

In the under 15 girls we had 4 athletes competing in multiple sprints, jumps and throws. They also ran extremely well with excellent changeovers in the 4x100m. Highlights were Nora Nzurike who gained PBs in the 100m (14.6) and 200m (30.2secs). Kenina Nkrumah threw an excellent 19.54m in the Javelin and her team mate Chiara Mullings Smith jumped a new PB of 1.30m in the high jump. Finally to complete the set of PBs Venisha Ngala ran 30.5 secs in the 200m

The U17 Women had a great turnout with 5 athletes. They all grouped together to run a strong 4x100m and had good success individually. Precious Ajireloja competed well in the sprints with new PBs of 13.0 in the 100m and 9.55 in the triple jump. Leila Lauder ran well in the 1500m for 3rd place and set a new long jump PB of 3.42m. Anika Sharma returned to competition with a new PB of 50.1secs in the 300m and strong 800m. Stacey Kwarteng-Amaniampong improved her PB to 3.97m in the long jump and ran well in the sprints. Finally for the ladies Adaeze Oyem had a great competition setting PBs in the 100m (14.1secs) and 80m hurdles (14.9secs).

The club had its best turnout of the season of 5 athletes in the Under 13 boys. Kelvin Ajireloja had a great debut for the club setting the third fastest 100m of the day of 13.1 secs and then running the 200m and throwing the shot.  Elias Furreedan continues to improve running PBs in the 100m (17.4secs) , 800m (3m 11 secs) and jumped a great 2.87m in the long jump. Barney Perkins ran a new PB in the 1500m of 5m 24 secs. It was great to see him then have a go at the 100m and Javelin. Khalif Ali ran a brilliant debut 5m 29 secs in the 1500 and also sprinted and jumped. Finally Ibrhaim Khan showed his endurance and strength competing in the 100, 800, Long jump and Shot. His 100m of 17 secs was a new PB.

The under 15 boys were as always well represented. Aron Berhe had a great performance in the 800m to finish second and threw the Javelin. His team mate Sam Horsley jumped off his sick bed to run the 1500m and throw the Javelin. Ryder Islam ran his first ever competitive 200m in 30.1secs and was just outside his best in the 1500m

The sprinters again showed improvement. New Recruit Justice Okereke ran 12.3secs in the 100m, 25.7secs in the 200m and jumped 4.64m in the long jump. Jaskirat Singh set a new PB of 5.18m in the long jump and equalled his best in the 200m. Damien Amaniampong ran new PBs of 12.3 secs in the 100m, 25.8secs in the 200m and competed in the high jump for the first time. Finally Jaydan Roberts Edwards returning from injury equalled his PB in the 100m (12.2 secs) , ran a new one of 25.5secs in the 200m and threw the Javelin for the first time. 

The whole group of Sprinters has worked really hard on their relays with Coach Ernie and Jeevakan and this led to a season’s best time of 49.4 secs in the 4x100m relay for the team of Damien, Jaskirat, Justice and Jaydan. With a strong winter training, great things are in store.

In the under 17s Mohamed Zergouat ran 100m in 12.6 seconds for a season’s best and ran the 400m for the first time. Samuel Crane completed a day of multiple PBs running 4:33 in the 1500m and made a debut over 200m. 

Another great day for all the club! Work Hard and look forward to further improvement next year!

Essex 5k Championships
Colchester

A contingent of 15 Ilford members made the journey to Colchester on the evening of 11th August, representing the club in its centenary year, to compete in the “Friday Night 5K” which also incorporated the Essex County Championship over that distance. 

The races were spread out over 5 separate races, based on expected finishing times, culminating in the elite women’s race at 8pm and men’s elite race at 8.30pm.
Ilford AC had runners competing in all 5 races and were rewarded on the night with some superb performances and four positions on the podium along with Essex County medals.

Representing the club on the night were: Danny Holeyman, Joanne Reeves, Joel Denning, Terry Knightley, Andy Catton, Richard Woolterton, Diaurmuid McDonnell, Stephen Philcox, Tom Gardner, Jordan Hinds, Aron Berakhy, Ryder Islam, Sam Rahman, Fabrizio Stefanoni  and Samuel Crane. 

Samuel Crane, although under 17, had a fantastic run in the Elite men’s race and finished in a personal best time of 17 minutes and 6 seconds. Ahead of him in the same race was the ever dependable Tom Gardner who ran a blistering 15.58 which was enough to earn him the gold medal in the V40 category.

 

Other County medalists on the night were Danny Holeyman, Bronze V45 in 18:52, Fabrizio Stefanoni, who just missed a Gold medal spot by 2 seconds, attaining Silver V50 in 17:22, and Andy Catton  who added to his many Essex Championships medals with a Silver V70 in 22:41

Although just outside the medal positions there were also PB’s on the night for Joel Denning 19:27, Richard Woolterton 18:46 and Diaurmuid McDonnell in 18:36


  Press Report 8th August 2023  

Aug 082023
 
10,000m Essex Championships
Braintree

The Essex 10000m Championships took place last Friday in Braintree with 4 Ilford Senior males battling for honours.

In cool conditions ideal for track racing, all four run well, with 3 bringing home medals.

First home for the club was Tom Gardner in 8th place in a time of 34m 41.2s, winning Gold in the V40 Category. Next home, just 2 places behind was Malcolm Muir in 35m 59.6s who gained a Bronze medal in the V40 Category.

Richard Woolterton ran a personal best of 39m 52.7s for 14th place, a time that won him a Silver medal in the V50 grouping.

Although just outside the medal positions Danny Holeman ran a season’s best time of 41m 02.9s for 16th place.


Orion 5
Epping Forest

The sixth round of the 2023 Elvis league was held in the forest at Chingford on a very wet and windy Saturday morning, over a 1 lap 5 mile challenging hilly course.

Nineteen Ilford runners braved the conditions, all putting in good performances.

First home for the club in 7th place was Sam Rahman in a time of 31m 34s, which placed him 3rd in the V40 grouping. Just one place and 4 seconds later was Stephen Philcox who was first in the V50 grouping. Next home for the club was Joshua Adler in 33m 08s for 23rd Place. In 4th place for the team was Sebastion Parris in 26th Place in 33m 11s.
Completing the team of 6 were Diarmuid MacDonnell 30th 33:50, Danny Holeyman 34th. 34:07


The Ilford men were 1st on the day and currently sit 3rd in the table with two matches remaining.

Complimenting the scoring runners were Steve Chissell 52nd 36:19, Raymond Dzikowski, who won the M60 series prize 81st 38:11, Dennis Briggs 93rd 39:37, Tarik Qirem 119th 41:39, Anthony Young 134th 42:57, Sean Costello 165th 46:07 and Joe Ramen 199th 49:14

 

Due to injuries Ilford AC ladies could only put out 6 runners, but all represented the club well on a tough course.

First home, also claiming 1st place in the F40 grouping was Joanne Reeves in a time of 38:33 for 84th place and 10th female overall.
Next home was Carlie Qirem in a time of 39:50 for 97th place and 17th female followed by Alison Sale in 101st place in a time of 40:15 and Mandy Reid who came home in a time of 45:26 for 159th place. 5th and 6th for the scoring team were Sharon Honey in 48:09 for 190th and Doris Gaga who was 239th in 67:05

The ladies were 5th on the day and currently sit in 3rd place in the series.

  Press Report 1st August 2023  

Aug 012023
 

Southern Counties Veterans Athletics Club (SCVAC)

A huge turnout resulted in the Mens Vets finishing first on the evening and now top the league by 1 point going into the last match.

The track events started with the 200m hurdles where Chris Scott crossed the line in first. 

The 100m for all age groups closely followed
Sam Malekout placed 3rd V35. Akwasi Nkrumah was also 3rd in V40. Michael Osunsami was 6th in V50. Dave Butler 7th in V60 and Gerald Daniel 3rd in V70.

The 2000m walk was for V35 and V50 age groups.
Steve Crane was 1st V35 and Steve Uttley 2nd V50. The sole female representative on the evening was Lesley Morris who won the V35 walk. Non-scoring Stuart Bennett was 5th overall.

The 400m was another all age group event.
Akwasi won V35. Chris was 2nd V40. Fabrizio Stefanoni 3rd V50. The was a slight hiccup in the V60 meaning no Ilford athlete ran.  Gerald placed 2nd in V70.

8 Ilford vests took to the starting line for the 1500m. Scoring age groups were V35, V40 and V50.
Sam Rahman was the 2nd V35 athlete to finish facing a determined sprint down the final straight from Malcolm Muir who was also 2nd V40. Fabrizio was also 2nd as the V50 athlete.
In the race overall Richard Woolterton was 11th just ahead of 12th placed Danny Holeyman. Dave Butler was 20th. Joel Denning on debut was 23rd and Steve Chissell 24th.

In the field events Akwasi won the V35 triple jump and Pete Whiting 4th in V50.
Sam was 3rd in V35 discus and Pete also 3rd in V60. Gerald placed 4th in V70.
Javelin was for V50 athletes where Pete finished 4th.

The men’s medley relay team (200m, 200m, 400m &800m) of Fabrizio, Sam, Chris and Akwasi put in a great effort to come home 1st.
There were enough athletes to also enter a non-scoring team. The team of Richard, Danny, Malcolm and Sam competed in another race and also came home 1st. By time they would have finished 6th overall. 

HAROLD WOOD 5Km
Wednesday 26th July

The latest round of the summer Elvis league matches took place on a cool, wet Wednesday evening on paths and trials on a hilly course around  and Harold Wood  Country Park.

Ilford were below full strength due to injuries and non-availability. but the team still posted good performances on the difficult route.

Malcolm Muir was in good form leading the team home in 6th spot in 18 mins 25 secs with Steve Philcox backing him up well in 10th with 19 mins exactly and taking the award for 1st M50. Josh Adler, who is improving week by week since joining the club, finished an excellent 19th in 19 mins 53 secs and Seb Parris placed 20th, just 3 seconds behind.
Dan Holeyman was 29th in 20 mins 27 secs, followed by Neil Crisp in 20 mins 49 secs for 34th which once again placed him first in the M60 category award.
One place behind came Joel Denning with a good run out with 20 mins 50 secs. 

In this match the team placed 3rd and remain in 3rd  position in the league.

First home for the Ilford ladies was Gemma Ellender in 67th and 5th in the female section with 22 mins 35 secs. Next over the line was Joanne Reeves in 96th and 19th female with 23 mins 44 secs.
Alison Sale  recorded 24mins 02 secs for 100th place and 21st female, with Carlie Qirem one place back in 24 mins 15 secs.
Completing the Ilford scoring team were Mandy Reid in 27 mins 59 secs for 177th and 50th female and Sharon Honey placing 186th and  57th in a time of 28 mins 40 secs. 

In this match the team finished 4th and are joint second overall two points behind East London

Also running for Ilford, and putting in fine performances in the rain and on the hills were: Dave Thomas (54  21.40)  Nick West (70  22.40) Adam Coals (77  23.02)  Steve Chissell (82  23.14) Bradley Brown (83  23.16)  Dennis Briggs (85  23.21)  Steve Lacey (103  24.20)  Tony Young (140  26.13)  Edward Skinner (170  27.45)  Rachel Halpin (188  28.46)  Julia Galea ( 219  31.52) Ray Everingham (222  32:!2)

Southern Counties Vets 10k

Last week saw the 14th staging of the Romney Marsh 10K, which also incorporated the Southern Counties Veterans championships.

After a few showers, Sunday dawned with warm sunshine and a few spots of rain but it was breezy on the exposed sections across the former smugglers paradise that is the sparsely populated 100 square miles of wetland area that comprises The Marsh.

Ilford AC’s Andy Catton was perhaps the most illustrious medal winner on the day, running 46:57 for M70 gold.
Andy has won at least 25 Essex senior titles and is a triple European Masters 10K champion.

TRACK RACES

Watford Open Graded Meeting 26/07/23

Five Ilford AC athletes travelled to Watford on Wednesday night for the opportunity of some fast times

Highlight of the event for the club was a new U15 3000m club record by Sam Horsley. Sam has been training with the club for around six months. He started at a good standard but has progressed rapidly. Even more remarkably this was his first track 3000m. He ran sensibly showing his customary strong finish to come 6th in his race in 9:22.18. This beat the previous record by 5 seconds and puts him above current coaches Gary Floate and Wayne Hick. From a national perspective the performance placed him 14th in the country and he now looks forward to the southern area championships in a couple of weeks.

Sam’s training partners Samuel Crane and Ryder Islam were also on show and achieved Personal Bests. Crane clocked 9:44.33 to move to 13th on the all-time U17 list for the club and Islam ran a remarkable 47s second best of 10:23.10. Islam moved to 12th on the U15 list with this performance.

Also in action in the 1500m were Fabrizio Stefanoni who ran 4:41.64 for his second fastest time of the year and Alex Richards in 4:08.18.

Be Fit Open Meeting 29/07/2023

Two of the middle distance squad travelled to Lee Valley for the open meeting with the opportunity to improve their 800m best.

Aaron Hick has run mainly 1500m this year but returned to 800m and ran a PB of 2:13.69 to win his race. It was change from his recent races as the first 400m was a slow 67 seconds. Hick then closed quicker and was pleased with his performance. Just behind him was Samuel Crane in 2:15.65 his second quickest time of the year.

  Press Report 24th July 2023  

Jul 242023
 

Essex County Track Relays 14th July – Chelmsford

Ilford AC is growing and achieving greater numbers in competition in its Centenary Year. Last year at this annual county event specifically for athletes under seventeen years the club had 4 teams and this year they were able to field 10 teams across the events.

The standard of competition was very high meaning that the squad just missed out on gaining any medals but all gave their best and performed to a high standard.

The highlights of the day for the club were the U13 boy’s 3x800m team of Barney Perkins, Khalif Ali and Ibrahim Khan who came home in fifth place. It was their first relay for the club and first track race for Khalif. All three members ran under the 3 minute barrier for the distance to finish in a time of 8.37.55

Second highlight was the U15 B team in the 4x300m of Damien Amaniampong, Danika Hennadige, Jaydon Mcdermott and Jaskirat Singh who beat the more experienced A team  (Jaydan Roberts Edwards, Aron Berhe, Ryder Islam and Sam Horsley) in a sprint finish by 2 hundredths of a second to finish in 5th place.

Lastly the U15 girl’s 4x100m team of Jasmine Shaer, Neriah Anderson, Nora Nzurike and Kenina Nkurumah had to go through a heat to reach the final which they duly did. They continued their good form in the final with excellent baton changes to finish 8th

Other teams on the day were:

U15 boys 4x100m – 5th – Damien Amaniampong, Danika Hennadige, Jaskirat Singh  and Jaydan Roberts Edwards

U15 boys 3x800m – 5th – Aron Berhe, Ryder Islam and Sam Horsley

U17 Men 4x100m – 5th – Mohammed Zergouat, James Thake, Aaron Hick, Jeremiah Brown

U17 Men 4x400m – 4th – Aaron Hick, Jeremiah Brown, Samuel Crane, James Thake

U17 Men 3x800m- 6th– Aaron Hick, Samuel Crane, James Thake

U17 Women 4x300m – 4th – Anika Sharma, Leila Lauder, Adaeze Oyem, Stacey Amaniampong

Credit to the athletes and coaches for a great evenings athletics.

Eastern Young Athletes League (EYAL) – 16/07/23

Ilford AC sent a team of 26 young athletes to the fourth EYAL match of the year in Hemel Hempstead. Each event had two selected runners scoring points for the team along with races with non-scorers hoping to gain experience.

Two athletes competed in the under 13 girl’s age group. Nayla Mills Ugoh competed in 100m and achieved 2 PBs in the 200m (32.3) and Long Jump (3.01m), finishing 6th in all competitions. Sofia Crane in her first competition also came 6th in the Shot Put.

In the under 15 girls we had 5 athletes competing in multiple sprints, jumps and throws. Highlights were new athlete Chiara Mullings Smith 1.25m for 5th in the high jump and Ruby Moffat-Virk and Kenina Nkrumah first attempts at 300m. Venisha Ngala and Neriah Anderson continued their recent strong performances in the sprints and long jump.

The U17 Women had a good turnout of 4 athletes which enabled Stacey Amaniampong, Adaaeze Oyem and Precious Ajireloja to finish 2nd in the 4x100m relay in a time of 54.5 seconds. They were helped by one athlete from our sister club Orion.

Precious was the athlete of the day for club setting the fastest time in her age group for the 100m of 13.2 seconds and competing well in the 200m and triple jump. Stacey set a new long jump PB of 3.75 and Adaeze set a new shot put PB of 5.81m. 

Leila Lauder continues to progress in the middle distance and ran a new PB in 1500m of 5.29 and showed her range by also competing in the 200m and long jump.

The club had three athletes in the Under 13 boys. Daniel Guiba ran the 100m and set a new PB of 2.98m in the long jump. Elias Furreedan continued his recent progression and again showed great range running in the 100m and 1500m and Barney Perkins ran 2.38 for 3rd in the 800m and also ran the 1500m. 

The under 15 boys were as always well represented. Sam Horsley has had a great year and had his best race so far in the 1500m to finish a close 2nd to his Havering rival in 4:24. His team mate Aron Berhe had a below par performance in the 1500m but bounced back in Javelin to throw a new PB of 23.92m

The sprinters again showed their steady improvement despite a few injuries. Jaskirat Singh set three new PBs 12.7secs in the 100m, 25.5 secs in 200m and 8.39m in the Shot Put. Danika Hennadige also set a new PB in the shot put (7.46m) and ran in the sprints. The PBs continued with Damien Amaniampong setting two 14.4 for the 80m hurdles and 25.6 seconds in the 200m. He also performed in the long jump with Jaydan Roberts Edwards. 

Luke Thake ran the 300 and 800m a little off his best but continues to show promise for the future. Ethan Guiba followed his younger brother and finished 5th in the 100m and 200m.

The sprinters and middle distance athletes Damien, Sam, Aron and Jaskirat came together to run the 4x100m and finished 2nd in a great 50.5 seconds

In the under 17s Mohamed Zergouat ran 100m in 13.2 seconds for 5th place. Aaron Hick dropped down the distances and ran a new 200m PB of 26.1. This was more impressive as it was run after an earlier PB 2:16 in the 800m.

James Thake gained further experience over his distances finishing 3rd in the 400m and 800m

Finally Samuel Crane completed a day of multiple PBs running 4:39 in the 1500m for 4th place. 

Another great day for all the club! Thanks to the coaches, parents and volunteers for their support