Press Report 4th May 2021  

May 032021
 

Ted Pepper Memorial off road 10k
Bromley
Monday May 3rd 2021

Bank Holiday Monday saw Ilfords Ex England International runner Andy Catton venturing down to Bromley for the Ted Pepper Memorial off road 10k.

Race also doubled as the Southern Vets AC champs.

An interesting one lap course, more grass and cross country than trail but pretty flat and at least with a bit of shelter from the chilly wind.

Starting in waves of 15 Andy off to a good start but rather overcooked the first 5k going through in 22.20. The wheels then came off a bit at 8k due to his lack of race fitness but he managed to hold on for a pretty pleasing 46.18, which earned him the SCVAC M65 Gold Medal.

 

Doddington Place Gardens 5 & 10k
Sittingbourne
Saturday 1st May 2021

Ilford AC club members Terry Knightley and Kim Baxter headed off for an early first wave start to Doddington Place Gardens multi terrain 10 & 5k at Sittingbourne in Kent on Saturday.
The weather was good but the course was bone dry and extremely rutted farm tracks. The 1 & 2 lap course incorporated fields of sheep with lambs, scenic views and two extremely challenging hills.  It was so difficult only one runner broke the 40 minute barrier.

Terry found the course not to his liking and struggled in the conditions but still finished 36th in a field of 316 in the 10k,  claiming 2nd male vet 60 in 49:13. Kim finished 91st in the 5k race in 44.91, making her come back from a nasty ankle injury in January.

Another quality medal was awarded to all finishers !

 

 

  Ilford AC Press Report 27th April 2021  

Apr 272021
 

Five intrepid Ilford AC middle distance runners competed at a local open meeting over various distances. Conditions on the day were cold and windy, which in theory meant times would be slower, however the Ilford squad proved otherwise. First up Joseph Grange (13) ran in the 1500m A race against numerous local rivals.

Joseph finished in 6th place achieving a new PB of 4:33.90.

Joseph’s dad and club team mate won the 600m later in the day setting a M40 British best time for 2021 of 1:23:88. Windy  conditions did not stop Dylan Harrod from running a very fast U20s time of 1:31:26 placing 3rd..

Next up was two club teammates Jak Wright elder brother to Joseph and Bradley Deacon both trying their best in awfully blustery conditions to beat the 2 minuite barrier for 800m while having an even bigger battle during the race against each other.

Jak led from the gun and commanded the first of the two nail biting laps. Bradley took the lead during the back straight of the second lap. Jak tried to keep with Bradley but Bradley pou red on the pressure and created distance between the them. Jak however managed to get close enough to Bradley to attack on the finishing straight. We all thought Jak’s hopes of winning the race were over and that Bradley would be victorious but somehow while running neck and neck along the 100m finishing straight Jak managed to edge himself into the lead and just out lean Bradley on the line. The battle was over but both had narrowly missed out on their milestone of breaking 2 with times of 2:00:65 and 2:00:73 respectively.

Both running new PB’s along the way. Also running the 800 was Veteran Bradley Brown who recorded a time of 3.04.8

Elsewhere over at Lee Valley Rhys Edwards started his summer campaign with a trip (not literally) over 400m hurdles.

After an impromptu training session with coach Wayne Hick just two days previously, Rhys stated his aim was to run between 68-70 seconds. He was therefore very pleased to run an impressive 63.74, which places him in 10th position in the Under 20 UK rankings. A remarkable achievement in his debut at the discpline. The future looks very bright for Rhys.

Open meeting
Mayesbrook
25th April

Kicking off the early races was Fidunu Abidekun. In his first race as an U20 he clocked a windy but nonetheless impressive 10.80 in the 100m and has sights set on the long standing U20M club record of 10.6 from 1964! On the Women’s side Ellie Wright ran her first race since 2019 and ran her fastest time ever in the 200m (26.93). Krystle Balogun opened up her season with a solid 100m/200m double despite some tough lane draws. Elsewhere Efe Adjarho and Wanya Williams competed in 100m and 200m respectively and managed to shake off a long hiatus from competition. As meetings look set to continue thick and fast, the sprints squad hope to improve upon their form into the rest of the year with focus on SAL meetings and the delayed County Championships.

 

 

CHINGFORD LEAGUE RELAYS
Central Park Dagenham
Saturday 17 April

The Chingford League season which has been shortened by the Covid pandemic concluded with the 4 x 2 mile cross-country relay in Central Park and Eastbrook End Country Park Dagenham. It was an excellent initial season in the competition for Ilford AC with both the mens and ladies teams gaining promotion to division one as champions of the second tier.

Ilford entered 4 mens and 3 ladies teams into the race and all 4 mens teams finished second in their category to a strong Trent Park Runners line up.

The Ilford A, which was made up of 4 runners in the junior men (under-20 age category, was set off by Aaron Samuel in 10 mins 45 secs in second with Rhys Edwards dropped to 3rd on the second leg with 11 mins 09 sec. Bradley Deacon regained 2nd on his leg in 10 mins 54 secs with Jak Wright anchoring the team home in 10 mins 41 secs to finish 2nd in the overall race, but easily won the division 2 title for the season..

The B team was led off by Paul Grange in 10 mins 30 secs, the second fastest time of the day, with the team completed by Dan Holeyman (12.15) John Crawley (12.34) and Steve Philcox (12.17) to finish second B team on the day.

In the C team were Wayne Hick (13.49) Dennis Briggs (14.24)  Adam Coals (13.26) and Diarmuid Mac Donnell (13.08) who were the second placed C team.

The D team also finished second in their category were made up of Trevor Robinson (18.21)  Tony Young (14.35) Ed Skinner (17.18) and Rob Sargent (17.29)

Anna Crawley was on the first leg in 14 mins 30 secs coming home 6th. Jordan Hinds moved the team up to 5th on the next leg in 14 mins 14 secs. Bree Nordin was up next recording 14 mins 50 secs for 6th at the change over. Amy-Loise Bird had a storming run on the anchor finishing in 13 mins 40 secs moving the team upto 4th in the event and they finished top in the division 2 match for the season.

The B team of Gaye Young )15.48_ Mandy Reid (17.53) Mel Jones (15.43) and Pauline Tester (16.39) for 4th in their category. while the team of Sharon Honey (20.08) Frieda Keane (18.37) Nicola Hopkinson (17.42) and Pramila Munro (18.21) placed 1st C team on the day.

The organisers of the League have done a great job over the winter to stage the 4 league races with the Covid restrictions in force on the day of the event.

 

smart

  Ilford AC Press Report 20th April 2021  

Apr 202021
 

Essex Half Marathon
Debden
Sunday 18th April 2021

On Sunday club stalwart, Terry Knightley, was the sole Ilford AC representative at the Essex Half Marathon at Debden disused airfield in Saffron Walden in Essex.

Over a three lap course around the old airfield designed in the shape of an aeroplane, Terry smashed the 26 Year Old Male Veteran Over 60 Club record by 1 minute and 13 seconds that was held previously by Ilford AC Great, Gerry Pells.

Terry recorded a new Ilford AC Club MV60 record time of 1 Hour and 28 minutes and 31 seconds to finish 54th Overall in the race out of 256 runners that incorporated the socially distanced ‘Rolling’ Start.

All finishers received a superb commemorative medal.

  Ilford AC Press Report Monday 12th April 2021  

Apr 122021
 
VAC Masters 5km
Wimbledon Park
Sunday 11 April

The Veterans Ac organised a 5km masters b road race in and on the roads around Wimbledon Park which included a steep incline after a mile. The race had an interesting entrant, Andy Muray – not the famous tennis player but a runner from Dulwich.

Tony Young and Rob Sargent from Ilford Ac entered the event and Tony produced a good performance finishing 49th in 21 mins 39 secs beating his previous personal best by 39 seconds. Rob placed 78th and was the 4th in the M65 age category to finish in 26 mins 17 secs.

 

Blackheath and Bromley Open
Bromley
Sunday 11 April

Three Ilford athletes represented the club at the Blackheath and Bromley open meeting on Sunday. First up was veteran, dad, Paul Grange in the 800m. He took a commanding lead from the start and continued pulling away from the rest of the field to win by 3 seconds to 2nd place, and 5 seconds to 3rd place and local rival, Jack Exley. Paul finished  in a time of 1:58.31.

Second up was Jak Wright in the 1500m against a competitive field. Jak started perfectly with a 64 second first lap, before tucking in the chasing group and running the next lap in a slower 68 seconds. With 500m to go Jak broke away from the chasing pack and stated to claw back the 50 meter lead from Southend’s Sam Wheatley in the pole position. Pouring it on around the final bend, Jak was seriously eating into his lead. Jak then unleashed a monstrous kick down the home straight to close down the gap, throwing himself over the line to finish second by only 0.03 seconds in a time of 4:07.39. Jak is glad to open his season with a PB and is hoping to break the elusive 4 minute barrier this year. 

Up last was the youngest of the trio, Joseph Grange, in the 3000m, who was out to challenge his club president and coach’s 40 year old u15 club record of 9:31. After a quick start, Joseph tucked in to a small group to grind out consistent lap after lap exactly on pace. With 1km to go Joseph was on track to take the long standing club record. Passing the bell Joseph strung the group out, which included Holly Dixon who recently ran a sub 16 5km in the world record breaking podium 5k race. The 13 year old then shifted into top gear to run a swift 36 second last 200m; narrowly missing out on the club record with a time of 9:32. Joseph is now optimistic to shatter the 9:30 barrier this season.

CHINGFORD LEAGUE 5km
Redbridge Cycle Circuit
Monday 5 April

This winter’s  Chingford League resumed at the Redbridge Cycle Centre on Hog Hill after the partial lifting of the Covid restrictions. The third match of the series was split into 4 races with wave starts for the 5km challenging race. The final results were determined by the compilation of the times from the 4 racers. Ilford Ac had a good turn out 28 runners who ran well and returned good results to give the club a successful afternoon.

Paul grange led the results with a new personnel best of 16 mins 02 secs with support from Tom Gardner in 6th with 16 mins 19 secs and jumior man Jak Wright in 10 with a new best time for the distance of 16 mins 39 secs. Next home was Alex Richards in 11th in 16 mins 41 secs The team was completed by two more junior Men (under 20 age category) Bradley Deacon with 16 mins 52, another with a personal best time, in 15th and Thys Edwards 18th with 16 mins 58 secs.

The team finished first in the division 2 match and are in pole position to gain promotion to the top league in their first season in the competition. The team were in such good form that their score would have won the first division match which was held in the same race.

Ryan Holeyman was another with anew best time has he finished first in the under 17 category in 17 mins 29 secs.

Club middle distance coach Wayne Hick, who was a track athlete in his competitive days, ran his first ever road race recording 22 minutes 10 secs and Steve Crane made his club debut recording 21 min 42 secs. There was also a personal best for Dan Holeyman of 18 mins 35 secs

Jordan Hinds led home the Ilford Ladies  in 31st place in their race with 22 mins 52 secs with The ever green Bree Nordin 37th , and 3rd female in the F60 age group, with 23 mins 04 secs. Next home in 43rd spot was Alison Sale who improves with every race recording a new best time of 23 mins 44 secs. Gaye Young recorded 23 mins 53 secs for 17th and Julia Galea was timed at 28 min 11secs in 101st. There was a fine run from Carol Muir who completed the scoring team in 108th with 28 mins 58 secs.

The ladies completed the club’s winning double topping their match result. They are also top of division 2 and are favourites to gain promotion for next season

Other Ilford athletes in action – Men:  Steve Philcox ( 61 18.56) Diarmuid MacDonnell (87  19.48) Adam Coals ( 107 20.57) Terry Knightley (124 21.34) Dennis Briggs ( 136 22.00) Ed Skinner ( 192 26.02) Rob Sargent ( 195 26.14) Steve Cheal (198 26.21) Trevor Robinson ( 221 29.46) Bradley Brown (224 30.20)

Ladies: Frieda Keane (112 29.19)  Pramila Monro ( 123 30.17)

There is one match left in this shortened season; the relays at Central Park Dagenham next Saturday (10th)

St Clare Hospice 10k
Harlow
Sunday 11th April

A Trio of Ilford AC athletes traveled to Hastingwood in Harlow on a cold and windy Sunday Morning to contest The Annual St Clare Hospice 10K Road Race.

Over a one lap countryside hilly road course against a field of 349 other runners with a socially distanced ‘Rolling Start’ the first finisher for Ilford AC was Danny Holeyman in 13th Place in a speedy new Personal Best of 38 Minutes Exactly and 3rd in the Male Veteran Over 40 Category.

Club Stalwart, Terry Knightley, followed him home in 24th Position in 40 Minutes and 14 Seconds to Win The First Male Veteran Over 60 Trophy.

Julia Galea ran a great race to finish in 206th Place in 57 Minutes and 45 Seconds for 23rd in The Female Veteran Over 55 Category.

All Finishers received a commemorative medal.

  Ilford AC Press Report Tuesday 6th April 2021  

Apr 062021
 
Chingford League
Redbridge Cycle Track
Monday 5th April 2021.

 

 

The Chingford League continues to pull out all the stops to get races on during these difficult times and on Easter Monday a series of races, to abide by current social distance measures, was held at the Redbridge cycle track.
Ilford AC competed in the first race of the day at 12:10 and were up against Barking Roadrunners, Trent Park and Harold Wood.
Despite challenging hills and cold wet weather Ilford AC athletes provided 28 of the 97 runners who took on the challenging 5k course.

Ilford runners after months of no competition put in a great performance on the day placing 1st and 2nd and having 7 runners in the top 10
Paul Grange put in a great performance placing 1st in 16:03, followed closely by Tom Gardener in 2nd place for 16:19.
Closely bunched in 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th place were Jack Wright 16:39, Alex Richards 16:41, Bradley Deacon 16:52 and Rhys Edwards.
Another notable performance was Ryan Holeyman who was first U17 runner on the day, finishing in 11th place in a time of 17:29

First female home was Jordan Hinds in 42nd place, and third senior female in a time of 22:52. Jordan was supported by Bree Nordin a place behind in 23:04, Alison Sale in 52nd in 23:44 and Gaye Young 54th in 23:53

Altogether a very successful return to competition after months of lockdown.

Ilfords supporting cast, all putting in outstanding performances were:-

Danny Holeyman 18:35
Stephen Philcox 18:56
Diarmuid Macdonnel 19:48
Adam Coals 20:57
Terry Knightley 21:34
Steve Crane 21:42
Dennis Briggs 22:00
Wayne Hick 22:10
Edward Skinner 26:02
Rob Sargent 26:14
Stephen Cheal 26:21
Julia Galea 28:11
Carol Muir 28:58
Frieda Keane 29:19
Trevor Robinson 29:46
Pramila Monro 30:17
Bradley Brown 30:20

 

Footnote: If any readers have taken up running during lockdown and would like to join or get involved with a running club please contact Ilford AC at ilfordathletics@gmail.com