Stratford AC reports round-up
ATHLETICS
Ryton 5
OLLIE Senior returned from a recent knee injury to be the top Stratford AC finisher at the Ryton 5.
Senior finished the race in 29:46, placing 21st overall. He was followed by James Cusack (75th, 33:04) who was competing in a somewhat shorter race than the half or full marathons he is accustomed to.
Pete Sugden (33:47) managed to avoid going off too fast at the beginning and found a nice rhythm, and was pleased to finish nearly a minute quicker than last year.
Next for the club was Luke Watkins (39:28).
Dave Maundrell (41:23) was another runner who ran the race quicker than last year, as did Bev Brigden, whose time of 43:07 was some 75 seconds quicker.
Simon Curran (43:59) was followed by the second of the club’s female finishers, Ruth Calderbank, in a time of 46:10.
Finally, Pippa Abrams recorded a time of 47:58.
Wells 10k
AFTER missing the event last year, Kate Sergent returned to the Wells 10k and completed it in 58:27, more than a minute-and-a-half quicker than in 2017.
Sergent, who competes in this race on a regular basis, finished second in her age category.
The race was won by Nathan Young in 33:40 while Joanna Carritt was the top woman, clocking 40:34.
Worcester Pitchcroft 10k
STRATFORD’S John Butler won the M70 category race at the Worcester Pitchcroft 10k.
Competing just a week after he ran the Chester Half Marathon, Butler completed the race in 1:10.21 and was delighted to have won his age category, the reward for which was a plaque together with a bottle of Beaujolais.
Great Birmingham 10k
INTERNATIONAL masters athlete Phil Brennan was representing both his country and Stratford AC when he competed in the Great Birmingham 10K at the weekend.
Brennan came second in the M75 category behind his GB masters colleague Vic Shirley.
His time was 49:25, a minute quicker than the third-placed runner in his age group.
Edinburgh Marathon
JUST six weeks after smashing his PB at the Brighton Marathon, Stratford’s Adam Evans came within a minute of his lifetime best at the Edinburgh Marathon.
Known as a fast and flat course, the Edinburgh Marathon starts on Potterrow in the grounds of one of the oldest universities in the world, before taking runners through the heart of Edinburgh.
It meanders down the historic Royal Mile and past the Scottish Parliament building.
It also takes in spectacular views of Arthur’s Seat and Salisbury Crags as well as the Palace of Holyrood.
Evans completed the race in 3:24:23 to finish in 551st out of the 7,300 finishers.
His next marathon is New York in November.
The race was won by Dan Tanui in a time of 2:30:13.
Edinburgh 5k
TWO of Stratford AC’s talented junior endurance runners competed in the Edinburgh 5k.
The scenic route took runners around Holyrood Park, St Margaret’s Loch, Arthur’s Seat and Dunsapie Loch.
First of the Stratford AC runners to finish was 13-year-old Charley Marshall, who completed the course in 21:42, finishing in 47th place and ninth female finisher.
Charley was followed by 12-year-old Molly Bullock, whose time of 23:48 ensured she finished 84th out of the 1,500 finishers.
The race was won by George Collins in 17:11 and the first female finisher, in 13th place, was Valencia Wright with a time of 19:23.
Vitality Westminster Mile
YOUNGSTER Maddie Linfoot finished joint second in the the girls’ U13 category at the Vitality Westminster Mile.
The 12-year-old, representing Stratford AC, finished in a time of 6:08, five seconds quicker than last year.
The category was won by Lauren Russell in 5:59. Stratford clubmate Danny Tolhurst finished ninth in the M40 category, clocking 5:24.
