NEWS No doubt everyone is aware of London’s new Covid-19 restrictions. With rising levels of infection in our area, we all have a responsibility to make sure that we are doing everything we can to keep ourselves, and those we come into contact with, safe and healthy. The regulations on outdoor athletics have not changed, but we recommend everybody reminds themselves of the current England Athletics guidance. This includes washing hands; maintaining social distancing from other runners and members of the public; avoiding congregating in groups before and after sessions; and, of course, staying away if showing symptoms or being advised to self isolate or quarantine.
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RESULTS “Hell, but fun” Now into its second week, #SecretCrossCountry at Beckenham Place Park is starting to build a reputation for its difficulty, despite its short distance. Its toughness is not putting anyone off, with one runner calling it “hell, but fun”. This week’s races saw a new course record and you can read the full report (and a fun read!) on the club website now. Thanks to Pete Lighting and Jonathan Tipper for organising. Races are every Saturday morning so if you want to take part please email /" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Jonathan.
Hercules Wimbledon 5k
Finally, what felt like a real race! Both men and women took on a novel format, organised by Ben Noad, whereby waves consisting of an athlete from each club battled it out over a testing 5km circuit around Wimbledon Park. The event was speckled with talent including GB International Nick Goolab, whilst also doubling up as the Surrey Road Relays, and it proved a big hit. Both Kent teams put in a solid performance finishing 3rd in each race whereby the positions were determined by the lowest cumulative time across the 10 legs for men and 6 for women.
With waves of runners setting off every minute, the event was over in a bit of a frenzy, but it was a very successful format as the first proper inter-club competition post-lockdown and hopefully one we see repeated soon. There were very credible runs from both Alexa Parker and Sarah Hanley, finishing 5th and 6th fastest respectively, whilst Anthony Johnson was the fastest home for the men in 15:29 despite a heavy fall earlier in the week.
Kent Women – 3rd
Alexa Parker (18:14), Sarah Hanley (18:24), Teresa Murphy (19:15), Victoria Stepanova (19:32), Dee O’Brien (20:04), Victoria Buck (20:28)
Kent Men – 3rd
Anthony Johnson (15:29), David Morgan (15:47), Sean Fitzpatrick (15:49), Chris Busaileh (15:51), Dan Pettitt (15:52), George Russell (16:07), Ben Harding (16:09), Ben Cook (16:14), Tom Sloan (16:40), Neil Phillips (17:07)
Run to the Sea Ultra 50k
2nd Pete Lighting (3:30:34)
VeloPark 10 Mile by Mornington Chasers
1st Nathan Wilkins (55:09)
The Woodchurch 10 & 5 Mile
10 Mile
1st Sam Evans (55:55)
Will Pitt (58:32)
5 Mile
James Bowler (31:23)
RunThrough Chase the Moon Olympic Park 10K
Nicky Hayes (46:34)
Heather Castle (51:06)
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FIXTURES In addition to weekly club cross country races at Beckenham, there are some road races available on runbritain.
Gravesend Floodlit 10k and 5k Series
A series of races held throughout the winter at Gravesend Cyclopark organised by Nice Work.
RunThrough Events
Some races organised by RunThrough are taking place. Take a look here.
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TRAINING C-Group training Despite the torrential rain last Tuesday, 23 runners turned out for the session in Ladywell Fields, including four prospective members joining a Kent AC session for the first time. Hopefully, this week’s session (which is 6 x 600m with 400 jog recovery) is slightly more dry. Prior to arrival please don’t forget to complete the Covid-19 self-declaration form available here. Runners have also been asked to consider wearing a brightly coloured top or investing in a head torch. Any questions please contact via email here.
B-Group men This week’s session is K-reps and runners can choose between Blackheath and Ladywell for the workout. Stuart Beaney for will post more details in the What’sApp group. If you’re not part of the group and would like to join, please reply to this email.
B-Group women
Training continues with Pete Boxshall and Ellie Brown on Tuesday nights meeting at 7.10pm. If interested, please contact Pete or Ellie for more information.
A-Group training
The A-group have a Fartlek session planned around Ladywell, meeting at 7:30pm. For more information please contact Ken.