Press Report 4th February 2025  

Feb 042025
 

CHINGFORD LEAGUE 5 Miles

Victoria Park

Saturday 1 February

The final individual event of this winter’s Chingford League took place on a revised course  of one small lap and 2 longer ones rather than the traditional figure of eight course in the park.

Ilford AC had a team of 29 take part in the event with the men racing over the fast flat course in division two. Their challenge was led by Ronan Edwards, who is in great form at present, finishing 4th in an excellent time of 26 minutes 04 seconds. Next home was Josh Adler, who is improving in every race, in 11th in a new personal best of 27 mins 42 secs. Tomas Krukauskas who impressed on his club debut came in on 30 mins 01 secs for 17th spot. One place behind was Manuel Vigo with 30 mins 03 secs. Donagh Horley was another making his club debut coming home 20th with 30 mins 19 secs and Richard Morris completed the scoring team in 22nd in a time of 30 mins 22 secs

In the match Ilford placed 2nd and they remain on top of the division 2 table and look good for promotion to the top tier with just the relays to come in March.

There were also personal bests for Joel Denning with 31 mins 24 secs in 29th and Jim Tilbrook, who is having a great winter of racing, in 58th in 35 mins 29 secs.  Steve Chissell equalled his personal best of 33 mins 27 secs for 42nd place, which he set in the same fixture last year.

The Ilford Ladies race in division 1 and first home was Jordan Hinds in 10th recording 32 mins 20 secs, with Anna Crawley next across the line for the club in 34 mins 13 secs for 15th place. Pauline Tester and Alison Sale both were timed at 38mins 55 secs for 59th and 60th respectively. Dianne Crisp was 111th in 45 mins 19 secs and Launa Broadley completed the team in 127th in a new personal best time of 47 mins 46 secs.  In their match the ladies were placed 8th and occupy the same spot in the league table.

Also running in the men’s race were:  Dan Holeyman (23rd  30.26) Richard Woolterton (28th  31.17)  Sam Joseph (33rd  32.28)  Bradley Brown (38th  33.19) Tarik Qirem (47th 35:05)  Neil Crisp (49th  35.17) Mike Perkins (61st  36.51)  Tony Young (68th  37.58)  Nick West  (69th  38.25)  Andy Catton (80th  40.19)  Sean Costello (85th  40.50)  and Joe Ramen (98th  46.28)

And for Ilford Ladies:  Frieda Keane (130th  48.29)  Julia Galea (139th  51.39)

17 junior athletes from Ilford AC took on the challenges of the final Chingford league race of the current season 

The under 11’s raced a 2k course
For the boys, Danilo Reina , despite falling at the start, finished in 6th place with an impressive run of 6.32m
Debutant Hannah Lawes completed an impressive first fun clocking 8.09m to finish in 21st place for the girls.

The Under 13’s ran a 3k course

Khalif Ali produced his best run of the series finishing in 5th place in a time of 12.07m for the boys. Teammate Elias Furreedan continued his impressive form this season with a 7th place recording a time of 13.18m. Ever improving Hashim Khan clocked 14.03m to finish in 8th place. Ever reliable Daniel Guiba completed the team in 12th position timed at 15.44m

The girls again produced really encouraging performances 

Leading the team home was Iris Wan in 12th place in 14.39m closely followed by Sophie Lawes in 13th place in 14.50m. D.L Majen-Akande continued her great form with a fast finish in 15th place timed at 15.30m just managing to hold off teammate Alicia Adams in 16th place with another encouraging run of 15.47m

Ilford’s U15 boys, running 4.5k,  proved to be the stars of the day with the impressive Fabio Reina claiming First place in a time of 17.43m followed by his equally impressive teammate Barney Perkins in Second place recording 18.09m

Luke Thake made a welcome return to the team and ran consistently well to finish in 8th place timed at 20.49m . Completing the team was debutant Robert Stanciu running the distance for the first time finishing in 18th place with 24.07m

For the U15 girls, Hawaa Patel ran another strong race giving her all finishing 6th in 24.12m

U17 athletes Ryder Islam and Leila Lauder both produced personal best runs with Ryder Islam finishing 4th for the boys in 17.20m and Leila Lauder claiming 1st place in the girls in 21.01m.
Both ran over the same 4.5k distance

The results are testament to the hard work put in by the athletes and their coaches with huge thanks to our parents and supporters.

Two Ilford Ac athletes swapped their Ilford vests just for the weekend to represent their university and county.

Rhys Edwards raced the short course (8.2km) at the British University Cross Country Championships in Cardiff. He placed 367th in a top class field and was first finisher for Queen Mary University (London).

Samuel Crane qualified to represent Essex schools in the South East Inter Counties School Match. This was his first county vest. He acquitted himself well over the 6km course finishing as 6th Essex finisher in a good quality field.

  Press Report 28th January 2025  

Jan 282025
 

SOUTH OF ENGLAND CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

Ilford AC sent a small team to this yearly championship again held at Beckenham Place Park

The club had two competitors in the U17 men’s 6k. Samuel Crane had the highest finish for the club on the day in 97th place in a time of 22 mins 08 secs. He moved through the field well after a slow start. Ryder Islam finished in 140th in 23 mins 57 secs and was disappointed after a good start but has the chance to come back next year and improve his placing.

Leila Lauder was next up competing in the u17 women’s race over the same course as Samuel and Ryder. She gained valuable experience finishing in an excellent 103rd place in 30 mins 11 secs.

Jordan Hinds was our only lady in the senior women. Running over a challenging 8k course, she again showed good endurance holding her position to finish in 121st place in 35 mins 40 secs.
Incidentally this was exactly the same position she finished in last years championships

Finally we had four runners in the 15 kilometre men’s race. The course was in fact around 1km short on the day but was testing with two hard hills each lap.
Josh Adler showed his winter training is going well as he finished in 58 mins 13 secs for 285th place in a large field.
Next in was Seb Parris with 62 mins 37 secs in 402nd while Steve Chissell placed 484th  with 66 mins 49 secs.
Jim Tilbrook completed the squad in 579th spot in 73 mins 47 secs. Jim was over ten minutes faster and over 100 places higher than he finished last year

  Press Report 21st January 2025  

Jan 202025
 

Chingford League
Epping Forest
Saturday 18th January 2025

SENIORS

The latest round of the Chingford League was held over a muddy, hilly course in Epping Forest and Ilford AC fielded a squad of 13 athletes in the senior races, which were over a distance of 8km.

Leading home the men’s team was Manuel Vigo in an excellent 28th spot in a large field, timed at 34 mins 16 secs. Next in was Seb Parris with 37 mins 09 secs for 67th, with Dan Holeyman 80th in 38 mins 13 secs. Steve Chissell kept up his winter form in 94th, and 3rd in the M60 age group to finish, 39 mins 26 secs.  The scoring team was completed by Bradley Brown (131st) and Chris kind (162nd). 

Also in action for the men were Jim Tilbrook 194th in 45 mins 58 secs, Mike Perkins 200th in 46 mins 08 secs and Tony Young 260th in 49 mins 30 secs

With the team winning in division 2 they maintain the top spot and will be looking to win promotion to the top tier in the final two matches of the season.

Alison Sale led the way for the Ilford ladies in 232nd overall in 48 mins 17 secs with Pauline Tester 294th with 51 mins 52 secs. Julia Galea finished 356th in 1:01:18 with Frieda Keane completing the ladies team just 5 places back in place 361 in 1:02:44

In their match they were 8th and are in the same position in the league and have a hard fight ahead to avoid relegation to the second division

 

JUNIORS

16 of Ilford ACs Junior runners braved the cold and muddy conditions at the Orion Chingford League race on Saturday morning

In the U11s race Danilo Reina continues to impress with a 7th place finish clocking an impressive time of 8.28. Chasing Danilo around the testing course was teammate Ewan McKinstry who ran another strong race to finish in 15th place with a great time of 9.17m. Great runs by both athletes.
Georgia Broom continues to impress with her determination moving through the field to close in 13th place with a time of 10.22m
47 runners took part in the race

The U13 boys race saw Khalif Ali continue to run consistently well, despite very little training finishing in 4th position with a good time of 8.19m maintaining 2nd place overall in a very tightly contested series with one race remaining
Teammate Elias Furreedan added to his recent great form with another battling performance for his team sealing 7th place in 9.14m
Hashim Khan produced a best ever performance just behind his teammate with an excellent 8th place and clocking 9.21m
Daniel Guiba closed the team with a typical battling performance from him finishing in 11th place with a time of 10.31m
Ilford’s ever improving U13 girls all produced performances to be proud of. Debutant Sophie Lawes ran a fantastic race leading the team home in 9.33m to seal 10th place. Iris Wan contributed with a solid run of 10.43m in 13th place, proving what a great asset she is to the team . Iris was closely followed by Alicia Adams , who yet again showed her potential with a great run in 14th place recording 10.50m. Alicia held off a brave challenge from fellow teammate D.L. Majen-Akande who added to her recent good performances finishing in 15th place, clocking 10.52m
The togetherness of this group is testament to all of their hard work and determination.
U15 athletes Fabio Reina and Barney Perkins continue to impress with outstanding Fabio finishing in first place clocking 18.59 on the testing hilly course
Barney Perkins finished strongly in second place in a time of 20.19m a great performance which maintains his lead in the overall series individual competition.
Ethan Guiba found the course tough going but he backed up his teammates in 15th place with a gutsy run of 29.30m
Lone U15G athlete Hawaa Patel added to her recent run of good form finishing very strongly in 4th place with another impressive run of 24.53m
The U17B race saw Ryder Islam run another strong race in this series finishing in 18.51m securing a hard earned 4th place , maintaining his position of 4th in the overall series competition
Another successful competition for Ilford ACs ever improving youngsters. A big thank you from our team to all of the Chingford league series organisers and volunteers who enable these races to go ahead.

Special thanks to our Coaches, helpers, supporters and parents for getting us to these great events

 

Benfleet 15
Sunday 19th January

 

On Sunday Two intrepid Ilford Athletic Club Athletes tackled the extremely Hilly and Challenging Benfleet 15 Miles Multi-Terrain Race. 

Held over the waterlogged and Boggy Thames Estuary Trails and on a route that ran from Hadleigh via Leigh-on-Sea out to Canvey Island and back again with over 760 fellow brave runners and finished with a steep climb to the finish line.

The first club finisher was Christopher King in 1 Hour 53 Minutes and 19 Seconds for 59th Position making his debut at the race. He was followed by Terry Knightley in 2 Hours 4 Minutes and 46 Seconds for 140th Place and was 4th Male Veteran Over 60. Terry first ran this event back 1991.

All finishers received a specially engraved medal and free Water Bottle.

  Press Report 14th January 2025  

Jan 132025
 

Metropolitan Cross Country League
Welwyn Garden City

Formed in 1966, the Metropolitan League is one of the oldest Cross Country leagues in the country.
Last weekend’s race was the 4th this season in the league and was held at Stanborough Park, Welwyn Garden City. 

In sub zero temperatures, 2 Ilford AC athletes represented the club.

In the Senior men’s race, Ronan Edwards ran well over the 8k course to finish in 112th place, and 4th U20 male in a time of 30 minutes 11 seconds

The veteran men also ran over an 8k course and Jim Tilbrook was pleased with his time of 43 minutes 51 seconds which placed him 164th vet and 24th in his age grouping.

Southern Counties Indoor athletics Champs
Lee Valley

Eight junior Ilford athletes competed in last weekend’s Southern Counties indoor athletics championships at Lee Valley.

U13 athlete Daniel Okereke made an impressive long awaited competitive debut reaching the 60m Final after clocking an impressive 8.37s in a high quality heat. Daniel clocked 8.61s in a very competitive final, finishing in 7th place marking a brilliant debut at the distance. Daniel also jumped 4.33m in the long jump final, a personal best jump which earned him 5th place overall.

Teammate Elijah Muirhead ran an excellent race in his U13 60m heat maintaining his technique to finish In a great time of 9.24s, a season’s best performance.

Star of the weekend was U17 athlete Jaydan Roberts-Edwards who reached the Semi finals of both the U17 Men’s 60m and 200m races with personal best times of 7.18s and 23.96s respectively.
Both performances are a credit to Jaydan’s hard work and hopefully he will achieve great success outdoors this coming season.

Donnell Lucky-Oligie also competed in the U17 200m and produced a personal best run of 24.98s finishing 6th in his heat.

Sisters Gloria and Victoria Ananwa both produced personal best performances in their respective events. Gloria excelled in her U15 200m and 300m races placing 4th and 5th in her heats with personal best times of 29.35s and 48.11s whilst Victoria recorded a personal best time of 8.55s in her 60m heat finishing in 6th place

Another athlete making her competitive debut indoors was Renee Chissell in the U17W 200m.

Renee did not disappoint, running an impressive time of 28.13s finishing 4th in a very high quality heat. 

The last Ilford athlete to compete was U15 Shot putter Dhanusshan Ponambalam who managed to throw an indoor best distance of 8.93m securing 8th place.

These Championships were of an exceptional standard and Ilford’s junior athletes did themselves and their Club proud.
Special mention to the parents and supporters who managed to get the athletes to the events in freezing and hazardous travel conditions

  Press Report 7th January 2025  

Jan 072025
 

ESSEX CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Basildon
Saturday 4 January

The Essex Cross Country Championships were held in Gloucester Park, Basildon once again.

In the Under 13s boys race, held over a challenging 3.1k course,  both Khalif Ali, 35th in 13 mins 43 secs, and Elias Furreedan, 54th 15 mins 41 secs, struggled on the hills but should be pleased with their performances in a quality race.
Likewise Barney Perkins, 32nd in 18 mins 09 secs, in the under 15 race, held over a 4.3k course, found the going tough but will come back stronger next year in the same age group.

Ryder Islam had his best championship performance to date to finish 19th in 23 mins 47 secs in the under 17 men’s race one place behind teammate Samuel Crane who was given the same time as Islam of 23 mins 47 secs.
Leila Lauder also returned to championship racing in the under 17 ladies event and showed her continued progress to finish in 20th in exactly 27 minutes over the 5.2k course.

Ronan Edwards had a great race to finish 6th in 28 mins 31 secs in the Under 20 race, over a gruelling 8k course and earned himself an Essex vest for the Inter Counties Championships in Nottingham in February.

The senior men and ladies raced over a 4km challenging course.
In the men’s event over 3 laps totalling 12km, Ilford Ac had 8 runners with Josh Adler leading the team home with his best championship performance so far in 52nd position with time of 46 mins 32 secs, while Dylan Harrod finished in 48 mins 31 secs for 67th spot. Manuel Vigo placed 81st in 49 mins 18 secs with Seb Parris coming home 116th with 53 mins 43 secs.
Steve Chissell finished 128th in 55 mins 05 secs and Terry Knightley closed the scoring team in 131rd place recording 55 mins 27 secs. 

In the team event Ilford finished 13th.

Also, running for Ilford were Steve Crane (172nd) and Jim Tilbrook (181st)

The ladies raced over 2 laps and 8km with Jordan Hinds leading the way for Ilford in a creditable 20th place  in 36 mins 59 secs.  Jordan held her position throughout the race and beat many ladies who had beaten her recently over the country
Next in was Alison Sale with 43 mins 1 secs for 59th and Shahnaj Crane placed 81st with 49 mins 50 secs.
The team was completed by Launa Broadley in 94th spot in 57 mins 07 secs.

The Ilford ladies finished 8th in the team event.

BRITISH MASTERS 10 MILE CHAMPIONSHIP (incorporating the VAC Championship)
Buntingford

The 2024 British Masters Championship over 10 miles was held on a chilly overcast damp end of the year morning as part of the Buntingford Year End 10 mile road race.The race runs through the town inn the first and last mile and around the rolling Hertfordshire countryside 8 mile loop.

Ilford AC had two entrants in the event with Rob Sargent coming home 455th in the overall race in 1hr 44mins 13 secs which earned him 5th place in the M70 age group in the British Masters Championship and he won the gold medal in the same category in the Veterans AC Championship. Julia Galea was close behind in 465th overall with 1 hr 46 mins 50 secs finishing 7th in the British Masters F65 grouping and 2nd in the VAC race and winning the silver medal.

Race Over the Glens
Country Antrim, Northern Ireland

Race Over the Glens of Antrim has been established for over 30 years and is one of the highlights of the Northern Ireland race calendar. The popular 6 mile trail race is raced around Glenariff Forest Park taking in every aspect of the stunning natural beauty the park and forest has to offer. The race attracts upwards of 400 runners from across NI and beyond as well as hundreds of spectators.
John Crawley represented Ilford AC and described the course as very hilly with a brutal climb over the last mile, made worse with the rainy conditions.

John finished 42nd of almost 600 runners, and 9th in his new age grouping of V40 in a time of 49 minutes 03 seconds