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Weekend Round (12-13 October 2024)
15/10/2024 00:00, In Blog /
JOHN H. COLLINS GWENT LEAGUE – PEMBREY, OCTOBER 12
The new cross country season started with a bang in the sunshine at Pembrey Country Park on Saturday.
Hundreds of athletes of all ages from all over south Wales and the west of England took part in the opening fixture of 2024-25 John H. Collins Gwent League.
The senior men’s and women’s races were won by Dafydd Jones (Swansea Harriers) and Georgia Palmer (Cardiff University AC).
Jones, who represented Great Britain at last year's European Under-20 championships in Jerusalem, completed the 9.15K course in 28.21 to win the senior race and also take the Under-23 category.
Following Jones home was Felix McGrath (Bristol and West Athletic Club) in 29.42 ahead of Ciaran Lewis (Les Croupiers Running Club), who followed up his bronze medal in the Welsh Half Marathon Championships race last weekend by clocking 30.02.
In the senior women’s race, contested over 7.15K, Palmer crossed the line in 25.32. And like Jones, also won the under-23 category.
Second to finish was Susannah Lecoutre (Swansea University) in 25.52. Imogen Wood, who was running as a guest, was third in 27.00.
In the senior men’s race, which attracted 438 starters across all the age groups, Bristol and West Athletic Club took the team honours. Meanwhile, in the women senior race, which saw 345 starters, Swansea Harriers topped the rankings on the day.
There were familiar names amongst the winners of some of the age group categories.
Iwan Thomas (Carmarthen Harriers), who represented GB in this summer’s European Under-18 Championships in Slovakia, won the under-20 men’s race in 14:46, ahead of Isaac Arnott (Cardiff Met Uni) in 14:59 and Ben Hughes (Pontypridd Roadents Athletic Club) in 15:09.
The Under-17 women race was won by Libby Hale (Swansea Harriers), who enjoyed a season littered with Welsh records and titles on the track this summer. Hale currently holds the Welsh 1500m record at every age group from under-13 to under-20.
The youngster crossed the line in 16:26 ahead of club-mate Millie Gold, who herself set a new Welsh Under-17 1500m steeplechase record in the summer and crossed the line on Saturday in 17.10. Holly Humphreys made it a Swansea Harriers clean sweep finishing third in 17:28.
Elsewhere, Wales and Great Britain middle distance international and prolific coach, James Thie (Pontypridd Roadents) won the Male Masters 45 race in 32:04, with Robin Woods (Builth Wells) finishing second in 32:31 and Huw Evans (Parc Bryn Bach) third in 33:09.
The next Gwent League fixture will be part of the prestigious Cardiff Cross Challenge, which takes place on Llandaff Fields on November 9.
RAS DAU GOPA ABERYSTWYTH TWIN PEAKS – OCTOBER 13
This year, the race took place over a slightly different route, but still took on the considerable challenge of tackling Aberystwyth’s famous Constitution Hill, or Consti as it’s popularly known.
The senior race was contested over 6km, taking on the challenge of Consti’s 240m elevation not just once, but twice.
The first male runner to return to the start and finish line situated at the bandstand on Aberystwyth’s promenade was under-20 athlete Finlay Friedersdorff (Leicester Corinthian AC), who registered a fast winning time of 23:17.
Chris Mclean was second in 24:45, while Ieuan Pugh (Meirionnydd) was third in 24:48.
The first female back on the prom was Caryl Davies (Aberystwyth AC) in a winning time of 30:31, closely followed by Chloe Piggott (Aberystwyth University Harriers) in 30:36 and Lauren Harries in 31:58.
WORLD MASTERS ATHLETICS MARATHON CHAMPIONSHIPS - BUCHAREST, OCTOBER 13
Ifan Lloyd (Swansea Harriers) celebrated his 65th birthday last Sunday in the best way possible by winning the gold medal in the M65 section of the World Masters Marathon in Bucharest, Roumania.
His time of 2:49:14 broke both the existing Welsh and UK M65 records, the latter having stood for 34 years to Scottish athlete Hugh Currie with 2:51:39 in Greenock on 19 August 1990.
Ifan even ran faster than the 2:49:32 he clocked as a 21 year old university student at the first London Marathon on 29 March 1981.
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