Press Report. 16th October 2018  

Oct 152018
 

Metropolitan League Cross Country
Claybury
Saturday 13th October

Ilford’s Tom Gardner opened his account for the start of the X country season at Claybury, with a solid run on a 3 lap course.
After 2 laps Tom was laying in the 29th place, but not being race sharp yet he slipped back on the final lap to 35th in 28-09.

Two other Ilford athletes guested in the race, Gary Coombes finishing in 30:47 for 119th place and Trevor Robinson who came in on 43:37 for 453rd place

 

TIPTREE 10
Sunday 14th October.

Sunday morning saw the running of the 2018 Essex 10 mile Championship incorporated into the Tiptree 10 mile road race.
The race was held on quiet rural roads around Tiptree but contained a couple of testing hills towards the end of the course. Ilford AC sent a squad of 13 runners, 6 of whom returned with a personal best over the distance.

The Ilford team were led home by Gary Coombes in 13th place and first pb of the morning in 58:56 Next home for the club was Malcolm Muir in 16th spot with 60:11 and the team scorers were completed by Steve Philcox in 27th in 61:32. Steve finished 2nd in the M50 group and took home a silver county medal.
Danny Holeyman was the next Ilford man to finish in 65:20 for 47th spot to complete a remarkable 5 pbs in his last 5 races.
The mens squad was completed by Alan Pearl 102nd 73:19 pb, Stephen Parker 139th 66:24 and Tony Young 165th 80:05.
The ladies squad was led home by Breege Nordin with a return to form in 132nd place for 75:59. Not far behind was Carlie Qirem who clocked up another impressive run for the season for 143rd place and a new pb time of 76:35, with Julia Galea completing the squad in 289th and 92:45.
Next two ladies home Alison Sale and Frieda Keane both recorded new pb’s over the distance, Alison by an incredible 10 minutes. Alison was 302nd for 95:03 followed by Frieda in 96:55. The ladies squad was completed by Launa Broadley who came in at 109:47 for 388th place

 

 

 

Royal Parks Half Marathon
Sunday 14th October

The Royal Parks race a spectacular Half Marathon in central London – the first and only one of its kind. The stunning 13.1 mile route takes in the capital’s world-famous landmarks on closed roads, and four of London’s eight Royal Parks – Hyde Park, The Green Park, St James’s Park and Kensington Gardens. Sundays race was held in pouring rain which made for a difficult race. Despite this Julian Fabian put in an excellent performance to record 86 mins 59 secs for 220th place and a new pb at the Half Marathon distance.
Also running was Peter Spelman who finished in 1:56:59 to come 44th in the V60 category. Peter was very pleased with his negative split which meant he was able to achieve his target of a ‘sub 2 hour’ half.

 

 

The Cabbage Patch 10-mile race
Sunday 14th October

The Cabbage Patch 10 is one of the flattest, most scenic, ten mile races in the country and almost as old as The London Marathon.
Starting in King Street, Twickenham, the route crosses the Thames at Kingston Bridge and Richmond Bridge, runs along the Riverside to finish on the drive in front of the York House Civic Building in Twickenham. Previous winners include Mo Farah.
This year Ilford’s sole entrant was Doris Gaga, and whilst not emulating Mo Farah, Doris still finished in a very credible 94:21 for 919th place.

 

 

WALKING SECTION

Enfield Walking League
Lee Valley
Saturday 13th October

FINE PERFORMANCES IN FINE WEATHER

Ilford sent a team to contest the 10th, and penultimate, race in the 2018 Enfield Walking League on Saturday afternoon at Lee Valley Athletics Centre.  The 5 miles’ road race was held in warm Autumn sunshine, and it was former Scottish international Stuart Bennett who showed best, as he claimed a high 5th position in a classy men’s race clocking 48 minutes and 28 seconds, being under pressure throughout but able to pull away from near rivals in the closing stages.  Next home was Mark Culshaw who deserved praise for making the start line, let alone the finishing post, as he turned out while suffering from a bug, having done so to gain team points.  He was rewarded with a 50.39 timing which secured him 7th spot.  In 10th came stalwart Dave Kates with a sound 54.13 clocking, while veteran Bob Dobson closed home the Ilford contingent in 19th position with 59.03 on the stopwatch.

The ladies race saw Rachael Lawless 8th and Lesley Morris 9th recording 56.03 and 57.04 respectively.   It was a red letter for both as they gained personal bests with Lawless beating the hour for this distance for a first time.

 

 

 

 

 

  Press Report October 9th 2018  

Oct 082018
 

Chicago Marathon
0730 Sunday 7th October

Trying to complete all the Abbott Marathon majors, Seb Parris took on his 5th in the series over the pond in Chicago.
A new event record of 44,571 runners hit the downtown ‘loop’ headed by the speedy event winner, Mo Farah.

The race began unusually early at 0730 and conditions were cold and wet throughout.

A good recent training cycle due to an ironman event meant Seb was hunting a new marathon PB despite falling a last-minute victim to the dreaded food poisoning less than 48 hours pre-race.

The rain was persistent all morning but so too was Seb’s determination. Crossing the line at the city’s Grant Park in a 6-minute PB for 03.03.39 (1627th place).
Seb even found the time to stop for a mid-race photo looking very relaxed for someone on their way to achieving a pb.
Pizza pie was eaten afterwards in celebration.

 

Harold Wood Charity 5 mile race
Sunday 7th October

 Six Ilford runners lined up for the third annual running of the Harold Wood charity 5 mile race which was supported and started by local West Ham and England legend Sir Trevor Brooking.

Held over a challenging 2 lap, undulating, mainly gravel course the race started and finished in Harold Wood park.

Leading the team home in 6th place, and first male vet on the day was Stephen Philcox in a time of 30:36. 2nd home was Bradley Brown in a time of 37:19 for 33rd place closely followed by Andy Catton in 37:41 for 39th place.

Finishing 4th was club captain Billy Green, who took the opportunity of a photo with his boyhood hero Trevor Brooking before the race, coming in for a time of 42:54 for 84th place.

Julie Gillender and James Huddart had a good spirited running battle throughout the race with positions changing on many occasions. Julie eventually saw her hill training give her an advantage and she finished in a time of 54:17 for 154th place with James coming in on 55:31 for 161st place

 

Chingford League Cross Country
Hog Hill Hainault
Tuesday 2nd October

 4 Ilford AC Runners ran as guests in the Chingford Cross Country League last Tuesday on the hilly cycle course at Hog Hill.

Alan Pearl lead the trio home in 22:41 for 100th place followed by Anthony Young in 24:07 for 118th , Trevor Robinson in 24:51 for 125th and James Huddart in 36:06 for 166th place

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Press Report. 1st October 2018  

Oct 012018
 
Valentines Park 5k
Sunday 30th September 2018


Ilford AC fielded a team of 31 runners in the 8th and final race of the East London FiVe Interclub Series (Elvis) held at Valentines Park and hosted by East London Runners last Sunday.
Held over the traditional two lap 5k course, 275 runners enjoyed the warm September sunshine.

The club used the race, and social event afterwards, to celebrate our ‘Super vets’.
Five of our longest serving veterans, having a combined membership of over 300 years between them, were in attendance on the day with three of them also running in the race.
Gerry Pells who no longer races has 69 years under his belt. Pam Jones who came 2nd FV70 68 years at the club. John Batchelor, who regularly races but is currently injured, 61 years service. Anthony Nixon, first V70 on the day 56 years service and Andy Catton, 3rd V50 on the day 51 years as a member.

It was a very successful day for the club with 5 runners attaining a PB and 5 age graded first prizes.

First home was Amin Koikai in 2nd place and first MV40 in 16:12, closely followed by Tom Gardner in 3rd for 16:18. Third home for the club, and in 7th place overall was Stephen Philcox in a time of 17:42 which gained him 1st MV50 on the day. The men’s team was completed by Danny Holeyman who achieved the remarkable feat of completing 4 PB’s in 4 successive Sundays over 4 different distances. Danny finished in 27th position with a time of 19:01 to add a 5k PB to his 10 miles, Half Marathon and 5 mile PB’s achieved over the last 3 weeks. Next home was Alan Pearl in 21:01 for 59th followed by one of the Super vets Andy Catton who completed the men’s scoring team in 21:26 for 67th place
Anthony Nixon, another of our Super Vets took the V70 title for 95th place in 22:26

The men’s team were second on the day, and second overall for the series.

First home for the ladies was Carlie Qirem, who continues her great form this season with 79th place, and 8th female on the day for a time of 22:12. Carlie was closely followed by Breege Nordin, 11th lady for 22:34 and 1st FV60 place.Third home for the ladies was club President Nicola Hopkinson who was 17th lady and first FV50 in 23:18 followed by Melinda Jones who was  3rd FV50 on the day in 23:33. This was Melinda’s first race after a long injury lay off, so a fantastic achievement.

The ladies team finished 2nd on the day and third overall in the series.

Other notable performances were Gaye Young returning from injury to finish 126th in 23:35, Natalie Crisp 130th 23:54 PB, Alison Sale 160th 25:18 PB,  Ray Sparra Everingham 179th 26:44, Freida Keane 189th 27:28 PB, Suki Jandu 198th 28:04 for a seasons best and Pam Jones in her 68th year at the club finishing in 34:04 for 253rd and second in her age group.

Remaining times (chip times) and positions for Ilford AC athletes:-

Tony Young 22:23 84th, Stephen Parker 22:41 90th,  Adnan Karim 23:05 104th, Ernie Forsyth 23:36 118th, Satha Alaga 24:28 140th, Julia Galea 26:33 177th, Doris Gaga 27:01 181st, Carol Muir 28:42 204th, James Huddart 28:57 207th, Natasha Mansouri 28:57 207th, Launa Broadley 29:27 214th, Julie Gillender 30:19 224th and Pete Whiting 30:40 229th

 

Warsaw Marathon
Sunday 30 September

Sam Rahman of Ilford AC took part in the 40th staging of the Warsaw Marathon last Sunday. The course followed a scenic route around the Polish Capital, even running through the zoo!  Sam ran a well judged pace with even splits reaching half way in 1 hr 27 mins 10 secs. He tired slightly in the last 3 miles however to finish his 12 th marathon in 2 hrs 55 mins 11 secs, the 7th time he has broken 3 hours, for 118th position in a field of 7515 finishers.

Blackwater Navigation Marathon
Chelmsford Essex
Sunday 30th September

Ilfords Peter Spelman took part in the inaugural Blackwater Navigation Marathon which was limited to 50 runners as it was a trial event.

Unfortunately Peter took a wrong turn after 8 miles as a sign telling you to cross a bridge had been removed and consequently ran an extra mile or so. Peter remarked that a beautiful course, good company and great weather made it an enjoyable experience.
Peter finished in 36th place in 5.15

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Press Report. Monday 24th September 2018  

Sep 242018
 

Ingatestone 5
Sunday 23rd September 2018


Ilford AC sent a team of 8 runners to the 34th running of the Ingatestone 5, half of whom impressed with personal best performances.
The race took place during a very heavy downpour on a challenging course starting from the Anglos-European school in Willow Green, taking in Fryerning and a challenging Beggar Hill before heading back to the finish at the back of the school.

First home for Ilford, continuing to find form after an injury layoff, was Malcolm Muir in 9th place for 29:24. Malcolm also placed 3rd in the V40 category on the day.
Second home, and the first of the personal bests, was Danny Holeyman with a very impressive time of 31:43 for 25th place.
Third home and completing the men’s scoring team on the day was Bradley Brown coming in 54th place for 36:34.
The men’s team placed first on the day.

Next two men home, both also achieving personal bests, were Anthony Young in 37:12 for 62nd place and Adnan Karim in 39:21 for 79th place.
The men’s squad was completed by Ernie Forsyth coming in at 39:59 for 84th place.

Two ladies represented Ilford AC on the day. First home was Freida Keane who has had a very impressive summer, who came home in 122nd place for 45:44 and the fourth personal best of the morning.
Next home was Carol Muir with a solid run of 50:27 for 135th place.

This charity race has strong links with Ilford AC being founded by Ilford Legend Howard Williams to raise money for Ingatestone Boys Club. Sadly Howard passed away last year, but nevertheless every year a willing team of Club volunteers keep Howard’s legacy by providing a team to administer the on the day entries and results service. Special mention therefore goes to the team of Martin Clarke, Andy Catton, Carlie Qirem, Julia Galia, Gaye Young, Satha Alaga, Declan and Ethne Cullen, Satha Alaga and Billy Green

 

RACE WALKING

Full Set (Gold/Silver/Bronze) for Ilford’s Walkers

Enfield League One Hour race
Lee Valley
Saturday 22nd September


Ilford’s walkers contested the annual Enfield League One Hour race at Lee Valley track on a cold and rainy Saturday afternoon.  They were led home by Mark Culshaw who in the 60 minutes’ period had the kudos of bettering 10,000 metres – by one metre as he covered 10,001 metres to claim 4th place in the men’s race.   In 10th spot, with 9,017 metres under his belt, came stalwart Dave Kates, who had just returned from competitive action in a much warmer Spain. Veteran Bob Dobson was 20th with 8,271 achieved.  Ilford’s women really set the track alight as all 3 recorded intermediate personal bests as they sped through 3,000 metres, 5,000 metres and 5 miles on route to their final totals. Emma Dyros was 4th with 9,475 metres, Rachel Lawless 8th on 8,760 metres and Lesley Morris 10th having recorded 8,540 metres.

In conjunction was an Essex County Championship, where gold medalist Dave Kates was 1st Essex man home and Bob Dobson 3rd Essex man so collecting a bronze award.  The women’s race saw Emma Dyros claim silver, with near neighbour Melanie Peddle of Loughton AC taking gold.

 

SWIMMING

Serpentine Swim
Saturday 22nd September

Thousands of swimmers took to the water at Swim Serpentine in Hyde Park’s famous Serpentine Lake.
Now in its third year, a record breaking 6,000 people of all ages and abilities entered this inspirational open water swimming event that includes half-mile, one-mile, two-mile and ‘Super Six’ swims. The temperature was about 17 degrees so pretty challenging for the swimmers.
Two Ilford ladies, Nicola Hopkinson and Carlie Qirem, took part in the 2 mile swim.

Nicola Hopkinson was first home with a very strong swim of 1:09:30 followed by Carlie in 1:46:37.
Carlie was particularly emotional at the end as swimming is by no means her strongest discipline and she was physically and emotionally drained at the end.
However her participation meant that Carlie earned the ‘London Classics’ medal which is awarded to anyone who completes the 3 disciplines of Running, Riding and Swimming the London Marathon, Ride 100 and Serpentine Swim.

 

  Press Report 18th September 2018  

Sep 182018
 

PLESHEY HALF MARATHON (incorporating the Essex Championship)
Pleshey, Essex
Sunday 16th September

The Essex Championship were once again staged in conjunction with the Pleshey Half Marathon. The race from the picturesque village is over a rolling course and was once again a successful day for Ilford AC with the club winning 4 county medals and runners setting three new personal bests for the distance.

Amin Koikai led the way for the Ilford team with an excellent 6th place in 1hr 14 mins 23 secs, the performance winning the Essex title as 1st in the M40 age group.  The ever reliable Malcolm Muir put in his usual gutsy run for 17th in 1 hr 19 mins 50 secs and 4th in the M40 category. Next home was Sam Rahman who is returning to form have a series of niggly injuries in 19th in 1hr 21 mins 02 secs. These three combined to place third in the Essex team race and bronze medals.

Steve Philcox came in 27th in 1hr 22 mins 26secs to win the M50 age category Essex gold medal.
Next up were a trio if runners setting new personal bets: Seb Parris with 1hr 22mins 46 secs for 29th, Dan Holeyman in 1hr 28mins 17secs placing 53rd and Alan Pearl with 1hr 40mins 25secs in 12th.

Bree Nordin finished 126th in 1hr 40 mins 35 secs to take the silver medal in the Essex F55 category contest.
Other Ilford AC runners in action were: Adnan Karim (268  1.56.36 ( Julia Galea ( 315 2.05.32) Satha Alaganasundaram (349  2.13.52) Frieda Keane (364 2.16.26) Natasha Mansouri (380 2.29.31)

 

Harvest Trail Quarter Marathon
Royston
Sunday 16th September.

Ray ‘Sparra’ Everingham was this years only entrant in the Harvest Trail Quarter Marathon,.
Starting in Royston, the race is a good old fashioned ‘trail run’ taking in many challenging hills and sections through the woods.
Sparra was pleased with his time of 1:09:18 although he commented he had to walk up the aptly named ‘cardiac hill’ which cost him a few minutes.

WORLD MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIP –
Malaga, Spain
10th – 15th September


The 23rd World Masters Track and field Championships are taking place in Malaga on the Spanish Costa del Sol. These championships also feature road races, walks and cross country

Rob Sargent of Ilford Ac competed in the 8km cross country over a 4 lap tough stony course coming home 57th in the M60age group with 43 mins 43 secs and was the 4th Brit to finish.
He was joined in the 10km road race by clubmate Steve Parker on an out and back course from the stadium to the seafront. Both runners were in the M60 category with Parker having a well paced run to finish 61st in the age group race in 47 mins 25 secs and Sargent showed improved form with 52 mins 32 secs for 75th

Also in the first week Ilford second claim member Gerald Daniel ran in the M65 300m hurdles semi finals. He finished 5th in ht1 and recorded 57.23 secs, the 11th fastest time, but was not a qualifier for the final.

During the second week Rob Sargent took to the track for the 5000m. There was a large entry of 67 for the M60 age categoryso the race was split into 3 sections and the results merged together. Rob ran a steady race to finish 56th overall in 25mins 47secs 32secs
Ilford Second claimer Gerald Daniel took part in his second hurdle event, the M65 100 hurdles. Gerald make a great start in his heat but hit the second hurdle and lost time as he recorded 21.16secs for 4th in his heat, He was once again the 11th fastest in the vent and a non-qualifier for the final.
On the final Sunday of the championship the morning was  hot sunny and humid for the half marathon which had 816 finishers in total. The course was similar to the 10km but over 2 laps. Sargent was in his 4th race of the championships and again keep a steady pace passing many tiring runners on the second lap to finish I 2 hours 0 mins 19 secs for 683th and 76 the in the M60 grouping, |He was the 9th finisher in a strong British team in this category. Teammate

Steve Parker had been suffering with food poisoning in the days before and was down on power but did well to complete the race in 2hrs 13 mins 45secs.