Road season is open! Really? Relays!
Road season is open! Really? Relays!
Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 02/04/23–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
2 April 2023
–
In competitive team action, we had the Southern road relays in Olympic Park, 12 stage for the men and 6 stage for the women, which were also heats for the National Relays in 2 weeks time.
We also had runners in the Brighton and Paris marathons, and halfs all over the place, most notably in Berlin.
One thing to note is that the Assembly League on April 6th has been cancelled, or perhaps postponed. The first race will now be on May 4th at Victoria Park.
Finally, entries are still open for events at Kent’s Coronation Games on 7th May.
–
SOUTHERN RELAYS
The men’s A team finished a highly impressive 5th, which bodes well for the Nationals with stronger runners to come in, the B team finished 25th, 5th B team, and the C team was 42nd, 2nd C team.
The runners were:
A: Chris Greenwood (22:30), Jonathan Tipper (14:58), Jake Simmonds (22:23), Chris Busaileh (15:29), Rob Sesemann (22:11), Sean Fitzpatrick (14:54), Owen Hind (22:21), Matthew Speed (15:06), Max Nicholls (21:35), James Boustead (15:23), Cameron Dockerill (22:15), Ben Clarke (15:12). The fastest short leg (2.75m) was Sean Fitzpatrick (14:54), the fastest long leg (4.5m) was Max Nicholls (21:35)
B: Dame Dibaba (22:50), Chris Mullin (15:46), Calum Fraser (24:08), Ian Ellwood 16:23), George Russell (23:24), Philip Woodford-Smith (16:34), Peter Lighting (24:22), Neil Phillips (16:17), Luke Rowland (24:39), Fergus Johnson (16:06), Barnaby Day 23:45), Rob Laing (16:27). Fastest short leg Chris Mullin (15:46), fastest long leg Dame Dibaba (22:50)
C: Richard Giles (25:30), Mohamed Elmi (16:09), John Gilchrist (25:56), Oliver Harland (17:04), Daniel Messias (25:27), Lyndon Marfell (16:42), Nicholas Ostrowski (25:39), Will Ross (17:10), Stuart Beaney (26:22), Matt Moroney (18:41), Ben Armson (27:03), Kieran Fitzpatrick (17:16). Fastest short leg Mohamed Elmi (16:09), fastest long leg Daniel Messias (25:27)
The runners were:
A: Bryony Proctor (17:27), Annie Birch (25:45), Georgina Wiley (17:46), Caoimhe Nic Fhogartaigh (26:08), Wllie Freeden (17:55), Alexa Parker (17:02). Fastest short leg Alexa Parker (17:02), fastest long leg Annie Birch 25:45.
B: Sarah Crichton (17:34), Jennifer Berg (28:51), Amy White (18:24), Nesrin Sabanci (29:03), Parris Williams (19:24), Ella Day (19:14). Fastest short leg Sarah Crichton (17:34), fastest long leg Jennifer Berg (28:51)
Great results from both men and women, who look forward to the Nationals in 2 weeks time.
Full results available here.
–
KENT AC ON TOUR!
First up, Brighton marathon, where we had 8 finishers – Tom Marshall (2:43), Ed Andrews (2:51), Huw Evans (2:56), Stephen Watts (2:58), Ralph Weir (3:11), Chris Hardy (3:54), and Sarah Young and Ronnie Haydon (both 3:59)
In Paris, James Bates ran 3:23 in his first marathon, a great result.
Over in Berlin, a clutch of Kent women had good races in the half marathon – Ivona Gongolova (97:21), Zuzana Nemeckova (1:44), Jo Wint (1:45) and Anna Delis (1:53)
Arguably the best result of the weekend was Nicky Hayes in the Southampton Half, where she ran 1:41, enough to win her age category (VW60) and be 16th woman home out of 718. Proving yet again that running life doesn’t end at 40, 50 or even 60!
Well done to all!
Please note that we will pick up results in big races where available, but do notify us if you have any result you’d like us to include, or contrarily if you’d like us not to include you in the newsletter. Email to .
–
CROSS COUNTRY HANDICAP RESULTS
Special mentions to Ian Ellwood and Cameron Dockerill who ran in all 9 matches for the men, as well as Lucy Elms, Clare Elms, Sarah Crichton, Teresa Murphy, Nesrin Sabanci, Jo Mott, and Anabelle Hadlow who all showed up for 7 matches this season. Phenomenal team spirit!
Handicap Competition
Women:
Lucy Elms
Nesrin Sabanci
Alexa Parker
Men:
Isaac Maxwell
James Boustead
John Gilchrist
Grand Prix (race position)
Women:
Lucy Elms
Alexa Parker
Clare Elms
Men:
Cameron Dockerill
Dan Pettitt
Isaac Maxwell
Congratulations to double winner Lucy Elms, Isaac Maxwell, and Cameron Dockerill!
–
KENT AC’S CORONATION GAMES – 7 MAY
Events to be contested are 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, The Gunpowder Mile, Hurdles, Relays, Javelin and Long Jump.
There will be qualified track officials and timekeepers, so times will be official and recorded on powerof10 and elsewhere.
The entry portal is now open here.
There will be a fully licensed bar, a wood-fired pizza van and a coffee hut. It costs £5 to enter the first event and £2 per event thereafter.
All spectators are welcome!
–
SWIPE RIGHT FOR IMPORTANT DATES
Save the dates for the all-important National relays, Kent AC Open meet, a wellbeing event, SAL, Assembly League, parkruns, and the big 125 anniversary dinner:
15 April – National 6/12-Stage Relays, Sutton Park
4 May – Assembly League Victoria Park
6 May – parkrun takeover (location TBC – please share ideas!)
7 May – Kent AC Open Meeting, Ladywell Arena
17 May – Wellbeing Event, St Dunstan’s
20 May – SAL, Hornchurch
1 June – Assembly League TBC
18 June – SAL, Mile End
6 July – Assembly League TBC
9 July – SAL, Stevenage
3 August – Assembly League Victoria Park
19 August – SAL, Thurrock
7 September – Assembly League BPP
16 September – 125th Anniversary Dinner
–
KENT AC IS 125
Save the date: 16 September 2023
Careful observers of our club badge will notice three dates:1898 was when our two founder clubs, Lewisham Hare and Hounds (1885) and West Kent Harriers (1887) merged to form Kent AC.
The club is therefore among the oldest athletics clubs in the country and one of the oldest sports clubs in the borough – certainly the one with the longest continuous association.
The club was first heard of in mid June of 1898, hence the focus on the SAL match on 18 June, but we will celebrate our 125th birthday more thoroughly on 16 September with an event at the track, runs and a dinner and dance to remember.
–
SHOW TRACK AND FIELD YOUR LOVE
Athletics needs more officials, and volunteering in this way is a wonderful way to give back to the club.
Courses take place on 1 April in Norman Park, and the following are available:
Level 1 Starter/Starters Assistant
Level 1 Track Judge
Level 1 Field Judge
This is a great opportunity to help get club events’ results on Power of 10. And it’s fun.
It’s a straightforward process that the club will pay for, with more detail here.
https://www.kentac.org.uk/membership/get-involved-volunteer/becoming-an-athletics-official/
Please contact Len Reilly for more info.
It would be great to see a few more people put their names down to help out!
–
KIT DONATIONS FOR JUNIORS
We still have more juniors who would be interested in receiving some kit. Please let Amelia know if you have any running kit (not only New Balance) that could be useful to the juniors.
This doesn’t have to be just Kent AC club kit, all running kit suitable for junior athletes is welcomed. Amelia will be setting up a junior kit swap shop at the open meet on 7 May.
–
WELFARE OFFICER VACANCY
The role would suit somebody with a children’s services background in education, health or social care though this is not essential. It is a great opportunity to make a difference and also looks good on your CV! Training in the role is offered by England Athletics and Neil will do a full handover/induction for my replacement. If you might interested or would like to find out more please let us know at .
–
MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY VACANCY
We would love to find someone who is:
– Diligent with an attention to detail
– Proactive in dealing with queries
– Computer literate
– Familiar with online payment systems
– Able to attend regular meetings and/or submit reports
If this is you and you want to give a little back to the club, then please reach out to to find out more.
–
SWEEPSTAKE NUMBERS AVAILABLE
–
ALL TOO WELL (KENT’S VERSION)
Keynote speakers will be Jack Green (Olympian and Kent AC alumnus), Dr Kate Williams (health), Zuzana Nemeckova (nutrition), Mary Brooking (injury and rehabilitation),
and one of our senior athletes to talk about running into mid life and beyond.Of course there will be a bar, and tea and coffee and a buffet.
The event will be free though ticketed via EventBrite so we can keep an eye on numbers and promote accordingly.
Watch this space as more speakers are recruited. This event is open to all and is designed to be the perfect club social for runners looking to improve performance and extend their engagement with our wonderful sport.
NIGHT OF THE 10,000M PB’S ENTRY NOW OPEN
–
EASYFUNDRAISING
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
WIN A TRACK PASS
To be added to the rota simply email Jacqueline/Laurie at ( /
).
We only need each track attendee to volunteer a couple of times a year to spread the responsibility fairly.
T&Cs for the track pass draw:
All volunteers for the current month will be added into the hat for a draw each month.
The winner will win a free pass for the next calendar month.
Names will be automatically drawn from https://namepicker.net/ (or similar alternative)
The winner can either chose to:
use their free pass within a calendar year
allow their free pass to roll down to another volunteer
annual pass holders can nominate another club member if they cannot make use of the pass themselves
No refunds/discounts will be provided in place of the free monthly pass.
Volunteers will only be eligible to win a pass once every three months.
–
TRACK, TRACK, TRACK
Buy your track pass here.
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:15 – 20:45
Thursday 18:30 – 20:30
Sunday 09:00 – 11:30
Please note that individuals are permitted to do their own sessions during club opening times, but coached group sessions continue to take priority.
NEW TIMES AHOY!
Thursday track nights will be extended from 1 April:
17:30-20:30pm to mirror Tuesday nights.
Please purchase your £5 junior monthly track pass in advance here. When purchasing the track pass can parents/guardians please enter the athlete’s name when completing the transaction
Please see a helpful FAQs guide here
Ladywell Arena now has new opening hours dedicated to the public. While during these times the Kent AC track pass is not valid, members can pay for an individual session.
Session times are:
Monday: 07:00 -15:00
Tuesday – Thursday: 1300 -1700
Friday: 07:00 – 15:00
Saturday – Sunday: 09:00-15:00
Price:
Adult resident: £2.70
Adult non resident: £3.00
Junior (U16): £1.30
The Kent AC track pass continues to be required for training on Tues/Thurs evenings and Sunday mornings.
Track staff have encouraged people to double check the opening hours before their training session, as they may occasionally be closed for school sport days and football friendlies. Hours can be checked at https://www.better.org.uk/leisure-centre/london/lewisham/ladywell-arena. This will likely suit members who can’t make training sessions but would like to train in the morning/lunchtime/evening.
Pay as you go fees can either be paid via cash to the desk or using the Better app (note: staff are working to add the sessions to the app).
–
KEEP US UPDATED
–
–