Press Report 3rd June 2024  

Jun 032024
 

ROAD AND CROSS COUNTRY

Sudbury Friday Night 5
Friday 31st May.

Two Ilford athletes travelled up to Sudbury in Suffolk for the annual Friday night 5 mile race.
Held predominantly on the road, the course is one lap, featuring a long hill on mile 2 and attracts over 400 runners.
Finishing in 9th place, and 2nd in his age category was Malcolm Muir in a time of 29:02. Just 196 places later was Billy Green in 205th place in a time of 40:54.
The race also featured Jack Nixon, who runs 2nd claim for the club, who finished in 2nd place with a time of 26:01

Orion Forest 5
Saturday 3rd June

The Forest 5 is a series of 3 races in Epping Forest, held on the first Saturday in June, July and August, the 3rd of which incorporates the ‘Elvis’ race hosted by Orion Harriers.
The race was held on a warm sunny Saturday morning over a 1 lap 5-mile course which was dry and featured a few climbs.

Ilford AC had 9 runners representing the club. First home for the club in 4th place was Steve Philcox who claimed 2nd M50 on the day in 31:23. Next home in 16th place was Danny Holeyman in 34:11, followed by Dave Thomas in 22nd place in 35:56 and 2nd M60.
Adam Coals was next home in 49th place for 39:14, followed by the club’s first female, Alison Sale in 43:42 for 69th.
Jim Tilbrook came home in 89th place in a time of 47:29 before a trio of Ilford ladies all came in together, Beverley Thomas 106th 52:46, Frieda Keane 107th 52:47 and Julia Galea 108th 52:47.


Rayleigh 10
Sunday 2nd June

The Rayleigh 10k is a multi terrain, hilly course, through Hockley Woods in Essex.
Due to recent heavy rainfall the course was extremely muddy in places, which combined with the hills and the heat on the day made for tough conditions for the 400 runners, including 2 from Ilford AC.
Joanne Reeves led the pair home in 127th place in 55:52, followed just 21 seconds and 11 places later by Billy Green.

TRACK AND FIELD

Southern Athletics League
Saturday 18th May

After 9 years in Division 3, Ilford made an encouraging start to their Division 2 campaign at Dartford recently.

Almost every member of the team did more than one event to help the team to a great 3rd place, behind local rivals Havering and Kent AC.  

The stand out athlete of the day was Dan Wheeler who returned to club competition after a few years away at university.  In competing in 8 individual events, Dan totaled 37 points. This included victories in the A string High Jump (1m 75) and B string Shot Putt (9m 90), 2nd place in B String Javelin (34m 70), 3rd places in the 110m hurdles, A string 400m hurdles, A string Triple Jump, B string Discus, 4th in the A string Long jump, before finally anchoring the men’s 4x 100m team to 3rd place.

Sam Malekout was another busy athlete competing in 6 events including a very impressive 1st place in the B string 400m hurdles (65.5), 2nd in the B string Long jump (5m 24), 3rd in javelin (40m 68) plus 4th places in the discus and Pole Vault.

Pete Whiting at age 60 had a great jump of 1m 80  to come 3rd in the B string pole vault, as well as another 3rd place in the B string Hamer with a throw of 14m 97, he was joined in the hammer by another 60 year old in Wes Clarke who was second in the A string with a throw of 34m 42.

At the other end of the age Category, 3 youngsters were making their league debuts. Chisom Chijioke came 4th in the B string ladies 100m, 3rd in the B string Long jump, and produced a personal best of 8m 67 to gain 3rd in the A string Triple jump. Her day was complete by running a leg of the ladies 4x 100 relay, where the team came 4th. Joining her in the relay was her training partner Omoyewen Ojo. Who prior to the relay had jumped a pb of 3m 82 to take 4th in the A string long jump, together with another pb for 4th in the B string 200m with a time of 28.9, before finally gaining valuable points with another 3rd place in the womens 100m hurdles.

Another athlete who deserves a special mention was Launa Broadley, who responded to the managers call and grabbed very valuable points in the shot, discus and Javelin. Krystle Balogun continues to regularly turn out in the Southern League and finishing 4th in both the 100m and 200m, dipped her toe back in the 400m and came 3rd in the A string in a very good time of 60.7. She also ran a leg of the 4×100 relay and came 4th in the shot.

The ladies middle distance events were covered by Pauline Tester, Anna Crawley and Jordan Hinds. Pauline, like Launa Broadley, volunteered to help gain some valuable points in both the 3000m and 1500m. Anna had a very good run for 5th in the A string 3000m, but her run in the B string 800m was a tactical masterclass hanging off the fast early pace, and gradually working her way through to claim victory and smash her pb by over 5 seconds. Jordan was narrowly beaten in her favored 800m, but made up for this by winning the B string 400m and leading the whole way to win the 1500m.

In the men’s middle distance Alex Richards showed a return to form by coming second in the 800m in 1.58.1 and winning the 1500m in a second sub 4 minute timing of the season. Ronan Edwards knocked 4 seconds off his PB in winning the B string 1500m in 4.04. Joining Alex in the 800m was Dylan Harrod who finished in 3rd place, before going on to take 3rd also in the 400m and also gaining points in the triple jump.

Like ladies several youngsters were making their league debuts Jayden Mcdermott ran pbs in placing 4th in both the 100 and 200m, before also running a league in the 4x100m. Aron Berhe and Ryder Islam both ran pbs of 2.17 in the Non Scoring 800m. Aron later ran a scoring 400m and cleared 1m 25 in the high jump. Oliver Blainey covered the 100m and 200m, gaining second in the 100m in 11.3 and then third in the 200m. sprints coach Nat Senior had to pull out of the sprint events, but still managed to get points in throwing a pb in the shot 10m 33 to win the A string.

Tom Gardner and Josh Adler took on the longest event of the day, the men’s 5000m. Tom led for most of the rest but was just beaten into first place by the Havering athlete. Josh had a stunning run, prior to the race his pb was 19.09, placing second in the B string he knocked over 2 minutes off this time to finish in 16.48. Josh then went on to compete in the steeplechase where he was joined by Malcolm Muir, Josh was 3rd in the A string with Malcolm 2nd in the B string.

The final men’s events were the relays where Ilford were 3rd in the 4×100, before winning the 4x400m.

Woodford Open Meeting
Tuesday 28th May

Several Ilford athletes competed in the recent Woodford open meeting, unfortunately it was cold and wet all day which affected the times.

Faris Vakil had first race of the year after coming back from a serious foot injury, he looked strong in finishing second in a time of 1.56.47. Jams Thake who is in the middle of studying for his exams had a great run, knocking a further second of his best and edging ever closer to a sub 2 minute clocking. H finished 3rd in a time of 2.01.07

In the B 800m Samuel Crane, wo is also in the middle of exams, came an excellent 2nd place in a PB time of 2.14. 19. Ryder Islam was 6th place in a time of 2.21.4, a bit down on his recent pb.

 

Hercules Wimbledon 1500m Night
Wednesday 29th May

Again in far from ideal conditions, Alex Richards ventured over to Wimbledon to compete in the night of 1500ms. There were 15 races on the night and Alex was in race 14. Having broken 4 mins twice in recent weeks expectations were high of something even quicker. In a race where the pace was perfect Alex smashed his pb with a time of 3.53.94. This time moved him up to 12th place on all time 1500m list

OTHERS

Navy Race OCR is an obstacle race that is organized in maritime surroundings at Trondheim in Norway. The race is suitable for anyone who wants to test their limits, both on land, in water and in the forest. The trail is approx. 8 km long, with 30 different obstacles.

The race itself takes place in a military environment and the obstacles will have a military theme. 

Ilfords Joel Dennis travelled over for the event, thoroughly enjoying it, entered as a team with his friend Paul Suett and completed the course in 1 Hour 44 minutes

  Press Report 28th May 2024  

May 282024
 

DAGENHAM 88 RUNNERS ELVIS 5 MILES
Eastbrook End Country Park
Wednesday 22 May 2024

The opening fixture of the 2024 ELVIS series took place in torrential rain and bleak conditions in the Eastbrook End Country Park which made conditions tricky for the 241 runners in the 5 mile race.

Ilford AC had 22 entrants in the events and were led home by Steve Philcox in 11th place in 31 mins 45 secs taking the award for the 1st over 50 to finish.
Next home for the club was Richard Morris, who was making his club debut, in 13th spot with 32 minutes 09 seconds and Josh Adler was 13th with 32 mins 12 secs. Berekhet Berakhy came in 28th in 34 mins 08 secs  and Diarmuid Mac Donnell placed 33rd with 34 mins 23 secs. One place behind was Dave Thomas, who was the 1st in the M60 category on the night, and closed the team scorers in 34 mins 37 secs. In the match Ilford’s men finished in 3rd position.

Carlie Qirem led home the Ilford ladies in 6th place in the female race in 37 mins 25 secs and 2nd in the F40 group, with Gemma Ellender 7th with 37 mins 39 secs and Alison Sale 18th in 40 mins 56 secs. Mandy Reid recorded 45 mins 29 secs for 34th and Beverley Thomas 46 mins 42 secs in 40th place.
 Dianne Crisp was the final team scorer in 46th place with 47 mins 42 secs.

In the ladies match Ilford finished 4th 

Michael Perkins ran in his first club race finishing 85th with 39 mins 07 secs and Neil Crisp in 44th was 2nd in the M60 category recording 35 mins 27 secs

Also running were:  Dan Holeyman, 38th in 34.51,  Steve Chissell 48th in  35.29,  Steve Horsley 68th in  37.27,  Adam Coals 81st in 38.54,  Tony Young 123rd in  43.18,  Rob Sargent 185th  in 49.55,  Launa Broadley 213th in 54.44 and Sheila Sinclair 238th in  61.42.

Edinburgh Half Marathon
Sunday 25th May 2024

The Edinburgh Half Marathon is one of the most popular races in the Scottish racing calendar attracting over 20,000 runners from across the United Kingdom.
Starting in Potterrow with the picturesque backdrop of The University of Edinburgh, the route takes in many of Edinburgh’s landmarks.

Despite the torrential rain, Ilford’s Anna Crawley enjoyed the race and was very pleased with a personal best time of 1 hour 36 minutes 20 seconds, which placed her 85th Senior female on the day.

 

 

HATFIELD BROAD OAK 10km
Monday May 26

The 36th Hatfield Broad Oak 10km was held on a warm spring morning as part of the village festival and attracted over a thousand runners.
The course is a figure of eight so the runners loop back through the crowds in the village at the halfway point.

Dan Holeyman led the Ilford AC challenge finishing in 72nd place in 41 mins 15 secs, while Gemma Ellender was first home for the ladies team with 44 mins 30 secs for 152nd place overall and 18th female.
Next in was Steve Lacey in 47 mins 03 secs for 226th and Joanne Reeves placed 327th in 49 mins 49 secs.

Alison Sale placed 386th with 50 mins 50 secs and Mandy Reid came home in 55 mins 49 secs for 563rd.
The Ilford squad was completed by Rob Sargent in 701st in 59 mins 33 secs and Julia Galea placing 831st with 63 mins 26 secs.

  Press Report 21st May 2024  

May 212024
 

Southern Counties Masters League
13th May 2024

Ilford AC Vets team travelled to Lee Valley for the first match of the Herts and Middlesex Masters League on the evening of Monday 13th May. 

Consistent performances across all the groups resulted in a team score of 134 points to finish first on the evening with the highlight being a club record in the V50 1500m.

Team Manager Henry Ricketts competed in the V35 100m finishing fourth in 14.16s and in the V50 shot finished third with a distance of 8m 32.

Sam Malekout finished third in the V40 100m in a time of 12.85s, second in the V35 shot with 8m 82 and sixth in the V35 hammer with 15m 28.

Michael Osunsami covered the V50 100m finishing third in 15.13s.

James Lambden in the V60 100m also finished in 15.5s. As a non-scorer he competed in the 1500m with a time of 5.47.29s.

David Butler finished second in the V70 100m in 18.4s and won the age group 1500m in 5.42.24s. He also achieved 4.75m in the hammer gaining 6 points for fourth place.

The 400m had athletes in age groups V35, V40 and V50. Berekhet Berakhy, negotiating an athlete falling across his lane, finished fourth in 68.87s. Chris Scott battled hard for second place in 61.24s and Fabrizio Stefanoni fourth in 64.16s.

In the 1500m Malcolm Muir, grabbing third position in the last meters of the home straight placed third V35 in 4.39.37s and in the process broke the previously held Tony Nixon V50 record of 4.39.90s..(*Malcolm, although a V50, competed in Ilford’s V35 team)
Berekhet in his second race finished third in 4.55.74s. Fabrizio also in his second race won the V50 age group in 4.58.04s. Neil Crisp won the V60 age group in 5.43.88s. Danny Holeyman as a non-scorer finished in 5.20.90.

Peter Whiting, covering the V60 hammer, threw 20m 89 for fifth place.

The evening closed with the 4 x 100m with Michael, Chris, Henry and Sam bringing the baton home in 54.35s for third place.

Full results will be held on Power of 10.
Thanks to Claire Levey for officiating.
The team move to match 2 on Monday 10th June in Stevenage.

 

 

South Woodham Runners 10k
19th May 2024

Six Ilford AC members headed out to South Woodham in Essex on a very hot Sunday morning for the South Woodham Runners 10k. Probably one of the most scenic 10k’s in the south, the route takes in the beautiful countryside and farmlands of South Essex and is mainly run along the banks of the River Crouch.

Leading the team home in 48th place in a time of 51:15 was Billy Green, followed just one place and one second later by Anna Crawley who claimed 2nd in her age category.
Next home in 71st place was Alison Sale to claim 1st place in her age grouping in a time of 53:54. Rachel Halpin crossed the line in 57:42 for 95th place, and the team were completed by Jim Tilbrook in 124th place in 1:01:07 and Julia Galea in 181st place in 1:07:09

 

 

Hackney Half Marathon
19th May 2024

The Hackney Half Marathon is one of London’s newest, and largest halves with over 20,000 athletes congregating on Hackney marshes for the early start, including 2 Ilford AC members, Stephen Lacey and Mandy Reid..

The route skirts parks and the major roads through Hackney, which are all closed to traffic,  taking in parts of the Olympic Park, before winding its way back to Hackney Marshes.

Despite the early start the heat was intense as the race got going but Ilford’s two competitors were made of stern stuff, and both ran well. Stephen Lacey finished in 1 hr 54 mins 09 secs and Mandy Reid coming in at 2 hrs 21 mins 49 secs

 

European Masters Road Running Championships
Porto Santo
17/19 May 2024

The European Masters Road Running Championship was held on the island of Porto Santo, which is 25 miles off of Madeira in the Atlantic Ocean

The races were held in fine warm spring weather along the coastal road from the town of Porto Santo.

The first event was on Friday morning and was an out and back course of 10km. Ilford AC member Ed Skinner ran the M65 category finishing 15th and 128th overall in 54 minutes 17 seconds.  he was also allocated to the M35 age group team who were short of a member and they placed 3rd in the team competition winning Ed a bronze medal.

Sunday morning saw the half marathon where Rob Sargent ran in the M65 grouping finishing 12th and 126th overall.

  Press Report 14th May 2024  

May 132024
 

Essex Track And Field Championships 11th and 12th May – Chelmsford

Ilford had a team of 18 athletes competing in the annual Essex Championships in Chelmsford. It proved to be a very successful weekend for the club with nine medals won. The club was well supported by officials, coaches, parents and new presidents Diane and Neil Crisp who came to show their support on both days.

Gold medals were won by Oliver Blainey and Jordan Hinds. Oliver had a superb race to win the U20 men’s 400m in a season’s best time of 50.44. Jordan followed this on Sunday to win the 800m senior women’s race again in a season best time.

Ellie Wright had a fantastic weekend picking up silver medals in both the senior women’s 100m and 200m. To add to her success both performances were personal bests, 12.49 in the 100 and 25.07 in the 200m. Alex Richards also won two medals in the middle distance events. He was second in the 800m and returned the next day to gain a bronze in the 1500m in a personal best of 3.59 his first time under 4 minutes.

Worth noting that Oliver, Alex, Ellie and Jordan have all competed for the club since being under 15 athletes and show the commitment and resolve needed to gain these medals.

Two under 15 athletes starting out on their athletic journey also gained medals. Damien Amaniampong jumped brilliantly to gain a silver in the long jump and returned the next day for a PB of 24.54 in the 200m just missing out on the final. His sprinting team mate Jaydan Roberts Edwards had another successful weekend with a bronze in the 100m in a PB of 11.66 and a seventh place in the 200m in another PB of 23.93.

Finally adding to her extensive medal tally was Krystle Balogun with a silver in the vets 100m and a 4th place in the women’s 400m.

Along with the medals there were PB performances in the under 15 age group from Barney Perkins (2.35 in the 800m and a brilliant 5.07 in the 1500m), Luke Thake (300m in 42.99) and Justice Okereke (24.41 in the 200m). In the Under 17 events James Thake just missed out on a medal with a best of 2.02 in 800m and Ryder Islam claimed new PBs in the 800m and 1500m, closely followed home by teammate Aron Berhe. Finally Josh Adler came 13th in the men’s 3000m in his first major competition.

Also competing over the weekend were Samuel Crane and Tom Gardner (3000m), Wanya Williams and Jordan Duncan (200m) and Toyin Olufemi who came 5th in the women’s 100m final.

Eastern Young Athletes League (EYAL) 5th May 2024

Ilford AC sent a team of 34 young athletes to the second EYAL match of the year in Hornchurch. It was another great weekend for the club with many debutants competing for the first time, 29 personal bests and a 5th place finish in the match.

Performance of the day was the victory of the boy’s u15 4x100m relay squad with a time 48.16 placing them second on the clubs all-time list.

Three 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 200m (30.93secs) and the Long Jump (3.48m). Drissialemoy Majen Akande jumped a PB of 2.44m in the long jump and ran the 100m and 800m. Iris Wan made her debut with strong runs in the 100m and 1500m showing great potential for the future.

In the under 15 girls we had 8 athletes competing. Kenina Nkrumah and Jasmine Shaer both came 6th in their 100m events and Jasmin Returned to jump a new PB of 3.89m in the long jump and also competed in the hurdles. Gloria Ananwa and Hawaa Patel both came 3rd in the 300m and 800m respectively in new PBs. Gloria also threw the shot with support from Nora Nzurike, Sophie Burrow (on debut) and Sofia Crane. Nora 6.61m was a new PB and shows real promise in this event. Sophie also competed in the discus and 100m along with Nora. Diya Kaur continued to show promise and versatility in the 200m, long jump and 1500m.

The U17 Women had 3 athletes. Chison Chijioke set a new PB in the triple jump of 7.92m and competed in the shot and 100m. Marissa Osas-Bavis made her debut in the long jump and showed good promise over the longer sprints, competing in the 200m and coming 4th in the 300m.
Adaeze Oyem had another great competition setting PBs in the 80m hurdles (14.29secs) and competing in the shot and 100m. Finally the 3 girls joined with one athlete from Orion Harriers to come 6th in the 4x100m relay in 57.86.

Five athletes competed for the Under 13 boys. Elijah Muirhead and Andre Mullings Roache continued their improvement with PBs in the 100m and long jump. Andre also jumped a new PB of 1.25 in the high jump for his third 3rd place. In the middle distance there were personal bests for Elias Furreedan in the 800m (first time under 3 minutes), Khalif Ali in the 1500m (second place) and Arnav Rathi in his debut 1500m.  All three boys also jumped or sprinted. 

The under 15 boys were as always well represented. Highlight was the debut made by Dhanusshan Ponnambalam who threw the shot, discus and javelin. He came third in the shot and discus, his shot put of 8.58m puts him in the top 25 for the club all time. Justice Okereke, Damien Amaniampong , Jaydan Roberts, Matthew Ayers and Olatoye Oguntoye all continued their improvement in the sprints and jumps, the first four boys making up the successful relay team and all going under 13 seconds for the 100m. Jaydan and Justice won the 100m and 200m.  In the middle distance Luke Thake set new PBs in the 300m and 800m, Barney Perkins a best in the 1500m and Stephen Amoli made his debut over the longer distance.

In the u17 men Jas Singh and Jayden Mcdermott set new bests over 100m and Jayden jumped 1.40m in the high jump. James Thake, Samuel Crane, Aron Berhe and Ryder Islam from the middle distance group also competed over multiple events in preparation for the upcoming county championships. Jas, Jayden and James formed part of the 4x100m relay squad which came 5th.

Halstead Marathon (incorporating the Essex Champs)
Sunday 12th May

On Sunday Two Ilford AC athletes battled the sweltering heat and tough hilly course in the Annual Halstead and Essex Championships Marathon.

The race of 26.2 Miles was held around the hot and exposed country lanes of Halstead and surrounding villages amongst 215 other intrepid and brave souls many of whom suffered heat stroke at the end.

The first finisher for the club battling the conditions was Terry Knightley in 32nd position overall in 3 Hours and 38 Minutes and 34 Seconds to win  the Essex County Silver Medal in the Male Veteran Over 60 category which was in fact his 83rd Essex Medal.

Following him home and making his ‘debut’ at the Marathon distance was Stephen Chissell in 57th place in 3 Hours and 57 Minutes and 17 seconds claiming Essex County Bronze in the Male Veteran Over 60 category, his first ever Essex Medal.

All finishers received a Quality Medal and Running Vest and Goodie bag for their sterling efforts.

VAC 5 Mile Championships
Battersea Park
Tuesday 7 May

The VAC Championship over 5 miles was held last Tuesday in warm sunny conditions. The 5 mile event who runners over 35 years of age was over 3 ½ laps of Battersea Park on a flat course.

For Ilford AC Launa Broadley was the top performer on the day finishing 3rd in the F55 age grouping and 63rd overall in 50 mins 15 seconds.to take home a bronze medal.  Finishing one place in front of her in 49 mins 18 secs was Rob Sargent for 4th in the M65 category.

Belfast City Marathon
Sunday 5th May

Last weekend, over 19,000 thousand people ran, walk or jogged in the 42nd Moy Park Belfast City Marathon.
The event started at Stormont Estate and finished in Ormeau Park with an array of entertainment provided to support the spectators and visitors. Conditions were perfect on the day, cool with some cloud cover and no wind or rain
This year the race also had the option of a ‘relay event’.

Ilford second claimer Jack Nixon ran a magnificent 2 hours 20 minutes 04 seconds to finish in 6th place.

Ilford were also represented in the relays with John Crawley.
His wife’s Uncle died last year and 2 of his family members  joined John to form a relay team, with the intention of raising money for one of the cancer charities that supported him. 

John ran the first 3 legs, covering the 15.9 miles in 1 Hour 51 minutes and 28 seconds

Ipswich Twilight 5k
Saturday 11th May

The Ipswich Twilight 5k’s course is a loop around the waterfront, starting by St Peter Dock Car Park, passing the university buildings and crossing the Island to the finish line. 

It is one of the few times The Island in Ipswich Marina is open to runners.
Malcolm Muir put in his normal gutsy performance to finish in 58th position, and 3rd in his age grouping, in a time of 17 Minutes 03 seconds

  George Nibre RIP  

May 102024
 

Ilford AC are mourning a sad loss of former International race walker George Nibre who died suddenly aged 67 He was a key figure in Club successes and, on hanging up his racing shoes became a respected coach and mentor. Hailing from the north east he came to the Capital for enlistment in the Metropolitan Police. After retiring he had a second career as a Security Investigator with Ford Motor Company. His best effort in Club racing was when a member of Ilford’s 1978 winning team in the National 10 Miles Championship in Crystal Palace, along with Steve Gower, Geoff Hunwicks and Brian Armstrong. He was an established International at 50 kilometres. On retirement he settled in Frinton-on-Sea and kept regular contact with the athletics scene.

Stated Ilford’s 1980 Olympic walker Roger Mills, “A great shock, George was a credit to the sport. Charisma, enthusiasm, dedication, humour and a zest for life. A sad loss. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and his beloved Newcastle United at this most difficult time”.

Tribute to George Nibre from Canadian-Based Jacky Lord
I’m sorry I couldn’t attend in person, however I was there in thought. George and I have known each other since we were both 15 or so years old, we met at Battersea Park walking event and became good friends from that point on. George would often take the train from Newcastle on his own and come South to stay for the weekend at my parents house in Hendon. We trained and raced together for quite a few years. A few years later George would be back in Hendon attending the Hendon Police college where he began his policing career. My wife and I where back in the U.K in 2012 and we had the pleasure of staying with George, Dawn and Anya at their home in Frinton for the weekend. It was no surprise to learn that Anya was heavily involved in many sporting activities and George and I were still competitive with each other when we went out for a “training” run along the Frinton sea front. I’ll miss our email exchanges and updates on the “Kings” progress as he always loved to share how proud he was of their accomplishments.
Wanted to share his final email to me earlier this year as a tribute to my friend and a lasting memory of the Newcastle Lad.
January 2024
Hendon lad, good to hear, yes meet up in July hopefully, my girl is now 16 yes ready for summer exams etc. Just walked another 20 thousand steps, glad you are all OK. Newcastle man.  George Nibre
All the best
Jack
A TRULY PROPER “SEND OFF”
The funeral of race walking legend George Nibre saw a large turnout at St.Mary’s Church on a hot day in Frinton-on-Sea. Race walking was well represented with, among our numbers, 4 Olympians : 1976 Olly Flynn, both 1980 walkers Roger Mills & Ian Richards and 2012/2016 double-Olympian Dominic King plus other Internationals, National Champions, National record holders, Club walkers and their families and our Race Walking Association President Chris Hobbs plus Southern Area activists including Chris Flint. Many travelled long distances to this Essex outpost. George’s daughter Anya qualifies as a former walker as she, and her friend Gemma (also present) won medals in the 2016 Southend Mile. At this service was Frinton resident Brian Armstrong, now sole living member of Ilford’s 1978 National10 Miles winning scoring 4 – as George, along with Steve Gower & Geoff Hunwicks, has now sadly left us.  A family tribute was spoken by daughter Anya, followed by 3 speeches recalling George’s past times in the North East, his race walking contribution and role in the Metropolitan Police. Many former Police colleagues were at the service, including ones who’d held high rank and one who’d joined the same day as George at Hendon. Many chose to proudly wear Police ties in recognition of George. Following exit music “Every Breath You Take” by The Police, a cremation for family and close friends was held in nearby Weeley Crematorium.  Immediately after the funeral service a gathering commenced at Frinton-on-Sea Tennis Club, a short walk away, which those who’d been to the Crematorium joined on their return. The walking world are thanked for giving such a much-missed athlete, coach and mentor a truly memorable send-off.
 
Dave A.

George with 3 Ilford AC stalwarts. L-to-R : Stan Hart, George Nibre, Brian Armstrong and Roy Mendham. Photo supplied by Brian Armstrong.