Founded in 1869

Oct to Dec 2010

Home Up

Last updated 17 December 2015

Press Releases for October, November & December 2010

  • If you want to find the latest results try Results!

  • If you are after older results and gossip please go to the Courier pages.

October 2010 November 2010 December 2010
  26/10/10     30/11/10     21/12/10  
19/10/10     23/11/10     14/12/10  
13/10/10     16/11/10     7/12/10  
6/10/10     9/11/10        
      2/11/10      

21/12/10

On another weekend when the weather disrupted the fixture list, athletes from Blackheath & Bromley defied the snow and transport chaos to race at the Iris Lotto CrossCup and supporting Gaston Roelants 10 and 5km road races in Brussels, Belgium.

A two and a half hour delay on the outward Eurostar journey did nothing to dampen morale and the runners responded with some fine performances across the age groups. Michael Skinner was selected for an England Senior team which competed in the main race of the day. Up the front a storming finish from European Cross Country champion Sergiy Lebid saw him snatch victory from Kenyans Isaiah Keoch and Pau Meli.

Skinner held back at the traditionally fast start and then worked his way through the field on the seven lap course to place 17th , a good run as he continues to improve his form after injury.

Alex Bruce Littlewood made his debut in this race and, despite finding it tough on the later laps, finished in 46th with Andy Rayner 51st closing strongly in the blizzard conditions while the local band played “Walking On Sunshine”. Phil Sesemann was 22nd in a high class under 20 race with modern pentathlete Oliver Robinson 34th.

In the Gaston Roelants 10km road race, Birmingham University student Jack Swallow ran out winner in a time of 30.03 on a course which was short in distance, but treacherous because of the ice and snow. Jamie Darling overcame the after effects of a cold to close 11th, with Richard Hall 59th, Roy Smith 69th, Adrian Stocks 100th, Julie Reynolds 176th, Carolyna Jones Baldock 393rd and Zoe Wood 394th.

There was more success in the accompanying 5km race where Michelle Fewster caught the eye. Not only was she the first women to finish in 24th place overall but the local athletes were impressed by her bravery in competing in crop top and shorts. Most of them were clothed from head to foot.

Success didn’t stop there as 5th placed Eamonn Prendergast was the first over 35 male, and 19th placer Con Griffin was first over 55. Oliver Taylor was 15th, Rob Yates 22nd and Melody Kane 53rd.

A number of the athletes slipped over and picked up bumps and bruises and this persuaded over 60 Ken Daniel to drop out after 3km. His son Richard went one better and stayed in the hotel.

French fries may not be the recommended refuelling diet for the team but they certainly did the trick on this occasion. All that remained was to celebrate their performances in the evening and prepare for the five hour wait at the Eurostar terminal the next day. The squad were most grateful to Nick Gasson for organising the event.

Still on the International scene Scott Overall has been selected for the Aviva Great Britain and Northern Ireland team who will compete in an International team challenge against the USA. The clash will be incorporated into the BUPA Great Edinburgh Cross Country in Holyrood Park, Edinburgh on Saturday the 8th of January. Nine athletes will run for each country with six to score in the team contest.

During the Summer 2010 track and field season, there were a number of occasions when team results were changed after the competing Clubs had left the stadium. Most notably the Club’s Young Athletes believed they had qualified for the National Main Final after the Southern Final, only to find out days later that the match had been re-scored and they had been relegated to competing in the National Auxiliary Final. There were similar disappointments in the Kent Masters League and the British Athletics League.

Now three months after the event the results of the European Champions Club Cup for Juniors A Final have been amended. On this occasion, however, the change works in the Club’s favour. After the match the Club thought they had finished fourth but Blackheath & Bromley’s Junior Women are now officially the third best team in the whole of Europe, a remarkable achievement.

The reason for the amendment appears to be that the team from Serbia used athletes who were not eligible to compete in the Final. Correspondence from the Competitions Department of European Athletics states “While checking the results of the European Champion Clubs Cup Track and Field Juniors Group A that took place in Bydgoszcz/POL on 18 September 2010, we noticed that both Serbian Men and Women Clubs were composed of athletes from different clubs than the qualified ones.

Further to this infringement of EA Regulations, the European Athletics Executive Committee, gathered in Albufeira on 13 December 2010, decided to amend the results of the Men and Women Serbian Clubs, in order to take into consideration the performances of the sole current members of AK Novi Beograd (Women) and AC Sirmijum (Men). This of course leads to the modification of the final results of the event and of the grouping for 2011.

No further actions will be taken by the concerned athletes. Nevertheless, as the European Champion Clubs Cup needs to maintain its status and importance for the future of our sport, the Executive Committee emphasized that strong measures will be taken in the future in case the ECCC Regulations are not strictly followed.” The B&B Junior womens team will again represent the UK in Europe in 2011 at a venue to be confirmed.

A number of the Club’s female athletes were in action at the recent South Of England Inter Counties match at Biggleswade where they were representing Kent In the Seniors, Fran Green was 32nd while Michelle Fewster was 24th and Danielle Critchley 27th in the under 20s race. Amber Reed placed 38th in the under 17s race with Kate Curran 42nd in the under 15s.

Best turn out was in the under 13s age group with Georgina Taylor coming home in 16th, just ahead of Niamh Bridson Hubbard in 17th and Charlotte Rhule in the chasing pack in 25th place, helping the Kent team to 5th place.

Will Ruiz, who is still only 14, ran in the under 17s race at the Holly Run at Reigate and finished in a very useful 13th place.

Top of Page


14/12/10

Michael Skinner has been selected to represent England at this weekends International Cross Cup meeting in Brussels. The race is probably the highest standard cross country meeting in Europe this side of Christmas, save for last weekends European Championships.

 

The 31 year old Blackheath & Bromley athlete won’t be on his own in the Belgian capital as 30 club mates will also be making the trip to Brussels to compete in the full range of supporting races.

 

Blackheath & Bromley’s older athletes enjoyed a successful afternoon at the Kent Veterans Cross Country Championships at Tunbridge Wells with three individual winners and three team wins across the six age group races.

 

Jennie Butler won the womens over 35s race by seven seconds in 19.26 and with Jane Bradshaw 4th and Sarah Dowling 6th the Club were emphatic winners of the team race.. In fact, had B teams been allowed to score in the team contest, the Club would have won the silver medals as well since, in an impressive display of strength, Sara Elmqvist was 8th, Bridget Davey 9th and Lisa Page 11th. They could have finished a C team as well with Kate Pratten 17th , Carolyna Jones Baldock 21st and Justine Eastbury 22nd.

 

The mens over 40s team missed out on bronze medals by just five points as Kevin May was first home in 10th place with Roy Priestley 23rd, Andy Tucker 27th, Steve Pairman 39th, Ian Taylor 41st and Brendan McShane 52nd.

 

Past President Anne Cilia inspired the womens over 45s to silver medals with a fine 9th place. Annie McDonough 14th and Jackie Montgomery 17th completed the scoring trio.

 

The Club had both the individual and team winners in the mens over 50s race. Top triathlete Nick Kinsey was an emphatic winner finishing over half a minute clear of the runner up. Mark Watling and Cliff Keene’s 6th and 7th places meant the Club won the team race by a massive 34 points. Again the rules prevented the B team from winning medals as the trio of Mark Ellison (12th), Andy Lawes (14th) and Chris Pike (17th) scored better than the official bronze medallists.

 

It was double gold again in the mens over 60s race with a clean sweep of the individual medals. Paul Ross Davies was a runaway winner, eventually finishing nearly a minute clear of runner up Graham Coates. Ken Daniel made a late decision to run and was rewarded with third place, giving the Club a perfect score in the team race. Again a B team of Rob Brown in 6th, Jim Phelan 10th and John Fenwick 16th would have won bronze, rules permitting, with John Turner 19th.

 

Helen Godsell is better known as a sprinter but she showed remarkable versatility to win silver in the over 55s age group. Maz Turner was 10th.

With these results and given the Club’s strength in the younger age groups, it would appear the Club are the strongest in the County from the cradle to the grave.

 

Full results of some other weekend fixtures have not yet been received. Full details will follow.

The 2010 track and field rankings for the under 15s age group have recently been published by Athletics Weekly magazine and one Club member stands out. Dina Asher Smith tops the rankings in three different events.

 

The Newstead Woods schoolgirl is top of the 100 metres with 12.00, the 200 in 24..50 and the 300 in 39.4. She is the only athlete to have run under 40 seconds for 300 and is 1.4 seconds quicker than the second ranked athlete. Only two athletes ran under 25 seconds for 200.

 

Dina is not the only athlete to feature for the Club. Shannon Hylton is ranked 10th in the 200 metres with a time of 25.56.

 

In the field two Herbie Kuentslinger coached athletes feature in the discus. Yemisi Sofolarin is 13th in the girls lists with 31.06 while for the boys Louis Mascarenhas is 14th in 36.82. Elsewhere Reon Gowan Wade is 13th in the long jump with 6.02 and Liam Cater 20th in the javelin with 44.81.

Top of Page


7/12/10

It has been a fairly quiet few days for the athletes of Blackheath & Bromley with the heavy snow causing the cancellation of many fixtures. Nevertheless, some determined souls still managed to compete.

Up in the Midlands Birmingham University student Jack Swallow was in action at the latest Birmingham Cross Country League match. He finished in 28th place with former member Jeremy Bradley, who now runs for Cheltenham finishing 42nd.

Jamie Darling ran in the Old Boys race at the Varsity match at Wimbledon Common. The former Oxford University man finished in 19th place in a time of 24.52.

On the roads second claim member Peter Tucker finished second in the Perivale 5 at Greenford. Most runners would be pleased to time 26.19 but the Met Police man was disappointed to be beaten by a runner wearing green arm warmers.

First home for the Club in the latest Bromley 5km park run was youngster Joshua Dowling. He finished in 16th place in 24.59 with Iain Swatton 21st, Barry Wetherilt 22nd, Ian Taylor 31st and Mike Peel 55th.

Indoors first year under 15 Maya Bruney was in action at the Windsor open meeting. She had two runs over 60 metres winning one race in 8.20 and finishing 4th against older opposition in 8.32.

Top of Page


30/11/10

There was disappointment for Blackheath & Bromley’s leading runners at the McCain UK Cross Challenge at Liverpool which incorporated the Trials race for the Great Britain team for next months European Championships.

For the Seniors, established Internationals Scott Overall and Michael Skinner had below par performances finishing in 10th and 17th places respectively. Alex Bruce Littlewood had also been looking for a place in the Under 23 team but he was 44th overall and 15th in his age group.

This was disappointing as all had been in good form recently. The previous weekend Overall had won the Amora Seixal cross country race in Portugal; Skinner had won the Club’s annual mob match race against Orion Harriers. The previous weekend Bruce Littlewood had won the Surrey League race at Dorking, competing for his second claim club Hercules Wimbledon.

In the womens race at Liverpool, Bryony Proctor was 39th overall and 12th Under 23 while Shavaun Henry finished in 59th.

Closer to home Jennie Butler finished 6th woman in the South Of The Thames Junior Championships at Wimbledon. She was 110th overall. Ben Harding was the Club’s first male finisher in 8th place with under 17 Will Mercer finishing a very creditable 43rd against Senior opposition. At the other end of the age scale, old war horse Ken Daniel, an over 60, finished in 137th.

Young Will Mercer was back in action the following day as he finished in 4th place in the Club 10 mile cross country championship. Winner of the race was Dan Ryan who is better known as an 800 metre runner. He won in 64.09 on a course which is arguably one of the toughest in the country.

Second place went to Glen Turner in 64.38 with Nick Kinsey third in 64.45. First woman to finish was Elaine Murty who was 10th overall in a time of 70.03 despite turning her ankle. Jane Bradshaw was second and Julie Reynolds third.

The race incorporated the latest of the Bennett Handicap series of races and it was a clean sweep for the women with Annie McDonough winning from Sarah Elmqvist and Past President Anne Cilia third. The updated positions in the series will appear on the Club website.

Club runners have featured prominently in a number of other recent events, none more so than Andy Rayner, Russell Bentley and Keith Ewing who won their respective races.

Rayner risked life and limb in the Puma Hell Down South race at Longmoor Camp in Hampshire. He won in 1.03.36 but picked up a mass of cuts and grazes when, as leading runner, it was beholden upon him to break the ice across a stream. His injuries can be viewed on Facebook.

Russell Bentley was unscathed in winning the Beckenham Charity 10km in 33.57 and veteran Keith Ewing won the Cotswold 10km in 35.28. Birmingham University student Jack Swallow ventured further north to finish 47th in the high standard Leeds Abbey Dash 10km in a time of 32.37 with over 50 Bill Foster 81st in 33.52.

Joshua Dowling was the Club’s first finisher at the latest Bromley Parkrun 5km at Norman Park. He finished 16th in 21.49 with Mike Peel 73rd and Iain Swatton 96th.

The Under 17 track and field rankings have recently been published by Athletics Weekly (bible of the Sport) and a number of the Club’s athletes feature.

Most prominent is Dina Asher Smith who is in fact an under 15. However, such has been the quality of her performances that she ranks third in both the 100 and 200 metres with times of 12.00 and 24.50. She is also 5th ranked in the 300 metres with 39.4, one place behind Rachel Dickens who ran 39.31. Rachel is also 12th ranked in the 200 metres with 24.93.

Elsewhere on the track Jessica Jones is 8th in the 1500 steeplechase with 5.48.36 while in the field Anna Huggins is 18= in the pole vault with 3.00 and Ellie Duffy Penny is 20th in the discus with 33.60. Unfortunately, for the first time in many years, the Club has no representatives in the under 17 mens lists.

Top of Page


23/11/10

Michael Skinner celebrated his 31st birthday a day early with an emphatic victory in Blackheath & Bromley’s Annual Mob Match against Orion at West Wickham last Saturday. He won the 7.5 mile cross country race by over three minutes finishing in 45.12, a good work out before he competes in next weekends Trials race in Liverpool to decide who should represent Great Britain in the European Cross Country Championships which take place in Portugal next month.

Michael was able to fit in the mob match as that morning he had been presenting awards at the Bromley Primary Schools Cross Country Championships at Crystal Palace, a race he won over 20 years ago. He chose to use the Mob Match as a training run.

The Club had 71 starters in the match and placed seven athletes in the top 10 courtesy of Andy Rayner 2nd, Alex Gibbins 3rd, Jamie Darling 5th, Dan Ryan 6th, Eamonn Prendergast 9th and Nick Kinsey 10th. Jennie Butler was the first woman to finish in 25th with Jane Bradshaw 27th and Andrea Pickup 32nd.

A number of youngsters were in action with Ross Braden 24th, Clare Parkin 62nd, Mel Kane 83rd and Jessica Jones 87th. These numbers and the quality of performances ensured a big win in the team competition as the Club scored 680 to Orion’s 1294.

The race incorporated the latest round of the Bennett Handicap Cup series, a nine event contest which takes place over the Winter months. First on this occasion was Jennie Butler with Sarah Dowling second and Kevin May in third.

Overall leader is now Sarah Elmqvist on 136 points followed by Jane Bradshaw on 125 and Chris Pike on 122. With another eight runners on a 100 points or over, and, with 60 points available for each race, there is still everything to play for.

Blackheath and Bromley young athletes represented Bromley borough in the London Youth Games cross country championships on saturday, 20th November. This was the first time in five years that the games had included cross-country and the girls Under-13 team made an immediate impression on the muddy Parliament Hill course, winning the team gold medal. Niamh Bridson Hubbard (06:26) was the race winner with Charlotte Rhule (15th) and Jessica Keene (16th - both 06:51) completing the scoring and just edging out Wandsworth, who finished with the same points, by virtue of having the higher-placed third scorer. Other Blackheath and Bromley runners were well-placed in the 160-strong field. Shannon Riskey finished strongly in 19th, as did Leah Everson (52nd) and Molly Dent (66th). Just behind them, leading the Croydon team home, was Elizabeth Ibidunni (72nd).

For the boys Thomas Powell was 37th, Remi Ullah 82nd

The girls Under 15 team added a bronze medal, with Lucy Sidey (6th), Bethony Frost (13th) and Anna Myers (18th) scoring and Isobel Jackson (39th) showing well among the 115 finishers.

Will Riuz led the boys home in 43rd with Richard Webb 53rd, and Thomas Desborough 72nd.

In the Under 17 mens race Will Mercer finished 11th for Croydon, with Chris Miles 38th, and Thomas Greenhill 54th. For the women Hope Stenning was 30th, and Catherine Brooks 38th.

Andy Rayner was back in action the following day at the Brighton 10km where he finished 16th in 31.55. Shavaun Henry was 8th woman to finish in 109th in a time of 37.32, while Rosie Ferguson was 584th.

It was a busy weekend socially as well as the Club held its Annual Dinner on Friday with principal guest the former mayor of London Ken Livingstone.

Top of Page


16/11/10

Alex Bruce Littlewood showed that he is shaping up nicely for the McCain UK European Trials which take place at Liverpool in two weeks time as he won the latest Surrey Cross Country League race at Denbies Vineyard in Dorking. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete was competing for his second claim club Hercules Wimbledon and, although he was second over the line, the first finisher International Frank Tickner was competing as a guest and so was a non scorer.

This was the first time in recent years that a Hercules Wimbledon athlete has won a Surrey League race, a proud moment for Alex and for his father Stuart, a long standing HW member. He beat some very good athletes in the process.

Alex will now be looking to gain selection for the Great Britain under 23 team which competes in the European Cross Country Championships in Albufeira in Portugal on the 12th of December.

One former Great Britain cross country International Dave Taylor made a return to action at Dorking. Now an over 45 Dave Taylor was 22nd while junior Phil Sesemann was 34th, both competing for their second claim Club Herne Hill Harriers.

Another former British Senior International, Bill Foster, competed in the British & Irish Masters Cross Country International as Santry Demesne in Dublin. Representing England, he finished 12th in the over 50s race in 12.39.

Blackheath & Bromley’s Senior women had to settle for second place in the latest Kent Cross Country League meeting at Danson Park. Despite finishing three runners in the top 10, they were beaten by a strong Medway & Maidstone squad meaning the team title will all go down to the last race of the season at New Barn Park in February.

First home last Saturday was Shavaun Henry who finished in 4th place with joint team managers Jennie Butler and Jane Bradshaw 7th and 8th. Again there was a good turn out with Sarah Belaon 13th, Sarah Dowling 18th, Sara Elmqvist 24th, Mel Kane 28th, Kate Pratten 41st and Carolyna Jones Baldock 42nd.

Danielle Critchley and Krystal Galley completed a one-two in the under 20 womens race, replicating their places of the previous meeting, while Catherine Brooks was 12th in the under 17 womens race.

Fast improving Chris Miles was first under 17 man in 10th place just one second and one place clear of Will Mercer

Lucy Sidey led home the under 15 girls team in 7th place and with Bethany Frost 14th, Sonia Woolhouse 15th, Samantha Leighton 17th and Holly Fletcher 22nd they finished 3rd in the team race. William Fuller was first in the boys race in 21st with Richard Webb 23rd and Thomas Desborough 24th . This gave them 6th in the team race.

Best team of the day for the Club were the under 13 girls. Led by Niamh Bridson Hubbard in 2nd they placed three athletes in the top five with Georgina Taylor 4th and Charlotte Rhule 5th. Jessica Keen, 8th and Shannon Riskey, 10th also made the top 10 and there was further quality in depth with Mary Guy 18th, Isobel Vowles 26th, Elizabeth Ibidunni 27th, Leah Everson 30th and Molly Dent 31st.

Thomas Powell was first under 13 boy home in 12th place and with Bailey Stickings 16th, Remi Ullah 18th and Tom Mason 22nd they were 4th in the team race.

Andy Tucker was the Club’s first finisher in the latest Bromley 5km Parkrun at Norman Park. He was 2nd in 18.44 with Graham Coates 7th, Steve Pairman 10th, Ian Taylor 11th, Rob Brown 17th and Iain Swatton 115th.

Jamie Darling finished 7th in the Civil Service Cross Country Championships in Birmingham three places behind former member Jeremy Bradley.

It will be another busy weekend for the Club this weekend both athletically and socially. Friday night sees the sold out Annual Club Dinner at Hayes while the following afternoon the Club hosts its first cross country mob match of the Winter. They take on Orion Harriers in what is bound to be a closely fought contest. The race also features the latest in the Bennett Cup Handicap series of races.

Top of Page


9/11/10

Blackheath & Bromley’s Senior Men enjoyed another outstanding weekend as they won silver medals for the second year running at the National Cross Country Relays at Mansfield’s Berryhill Park. This was a notable achievement against the top teams in the country and promises much for the Winter ahead.

Fastest for the Club was Scott Overall on the anchor leg. Fresh from finishing as first European at the BUPA Great South Run last week, he moved up to the silver medal position with a time of 15.01, the third quickest of the day.

Alex Bruce Littlewood had got he team off to a great start as he came in 14th on the opening stage in a time of 15.26. Michael Skinner returning from injury moved the quartet up to second with 15.16. Like Michael, Andy Rayner is on his way back from his injury so his time of 15.54 represented a strong effort. It did, however, mean he slipped a place before Overall cracking’s last leg effort.

The Senior women also featured prominently finishing in 13th overall. Bryony Proctor ran 10.33 on the opening stage to place 11th a position that was retained by Elaine Murty on the second leg with 10.50. Shavaun Henry, fresh from her second place in last weeks Last Friday of The Month 5km in Hyde Park, brought the team home in 11.12.

Back in the mens race the Club’s B team were 39th overall, a strong effort with Russell Bentley timing 15.4 1 on the opening stage. Alex Gibbins 16.30, David McKinlay 17.14 and Ian Frith 17.45 completed the scoring.

Phil Sesemann opened well for the Club’s Junior Mens team closing in 10th on the opening leg with 9.09. This was a very competitive race, however, and despite Stephen Cavey running 9.40 and Oliver Robinson 10.39, the trio slipped to 35th overall.

The Under 17 men produced a remarkably consistent set of times with Will Mercer (10.12), Robert Yates (10.16) and Chris Miles (10.17) finishing 48th. The under 15 boys team of William Ruiz, Thomas Desborough and Richard Webb finished 84th.

There was bad news for Montell Douglas recently as it was announced that the British 4x100 metre squad will not be receiving Lottery Funding in 2011. Montell, the British 100 metre record holder, was part of the British team which did not get the baton round at the European Championships last Summer, and, although she was part of the England quartet who won gold at the Commonwealth Games, she has lost her funding.

The 2010 track and field rankings for under 20 women have recently been published by Athletics Weekly magazine (bible of the Sport) and, fittingly for a Club who are National Champions, a number of its first and second claim athletes feature very prominently.

Three, in fact are ranked number one in their event led by British Record holder Sophie Hitchon in the Hammer. Sophie, a second claim member of the Club, improved to 64.47 this season, the highlight of which was winning the gold medal at the World Junior Championships in Canada in July. Lorraine Ugen heads the long jump lists with her leap of 6.35 while Katrina Cosby tops the 400 hurdles rankings with her 59.71 performance.

Megan Southwart is 6th placed in the 400 hurdles with 61.46 as is Jessica Jones in the not so frequently run 3000 metres steeplechase. Savannah Echel Thompson is 5th placed in the 400 metres with 54.68 and she is also 20th in the 200 metres with 24.9. Frederica Foster lies 9th in the 400 in 55.46 in her first year in the age group.

Remarkably Dina Asher Smith, who is an under 15, features twice in the sprints. She is 10th in the 200 in 24.50 and 14th in the 100 with 12.00.

Back in the field Sarah Abrams features in three events most notably the triple jump where she is 8th with 11.95. She is also 13th in the long jump with a leap of 5.76 and equal 15th in the high jump with fellow second claimer Philippa Wilson with 1.72. Sabine Efiannayi has had a successful year in her first season as an under 20. She is 5th in the shot putt with a throw of 13.22. Another first year, Samantha Milner is 7th in the discus with 42.51 while Christina Moore is 17th in the pole vault with a clearance of 3.33.

The Club’s athletes have as usual been in action in a variety of events recently. Keith Ewing ventured abroad and finished 34th in the Lausanne Half Marathon in Switzerland. His time of 77.27 was most useful for someone in the over 45s category.

Andy Tucker was the Club’s first finisher in the latest Bromley Parkrun 5km at Norman Park. He finished in 4th place in a time of 18.47 with Steve Pairman 11th, Rob Brown 21st, and David Carton 22nd.

Top of Page


2/11/10

The 2010 track and field rankings for Junior Men has recently been published in Athletics Weekly and two members of Blackheath & Bromley top their respective events. Both Jermaine Olasan and Andrew Jordon shared the disappointment of not being selected to represent Great Britain at the World Junior Championships last Summer. There are many at the Club who thought they should have gone. Jermaine heads the long jump with a leap of 7.53 while Andrew is the country’s top hammer thrower with a distance of 68.83.

Plenty of other first and second claim members feature in the lists. In the pole vault Ned Quiney is 4th ranked with a clearance of 5.00, with Mark Longhurst 12th (4.61), and Sam Brown 18th (4.41). Joe Lawrence is 5th in the triple jump with a leap of 15.11 with new member Jonathan Ilori 9th with 14.84. Joe is also 12th in the long jump with a leap of 7.19. Jake Haylock is 11th in the Hammer with a throw of 56.66.

Best placed athlete on the track is Dan Putnam. He was part of the Great Britain team who won bronze in the 4x400 metres at the World Junior Championships and he is ranked third in the individual event with 47.77.

Ben Hopkins is 8th in the 400 hurdles with 54.54 with Ben Parkin 13th with 55.46. Matthew Walcott is 10th in the 110 hurdles with 14.40.

With no formal Club events last weekend, the Club’s athletes have been involved in a variety of road, cross country and multi terrain events.

Birmingham University student Jack Swallow finished in 38th place in the Birmingham Cross Country League match at Leamington. Loughborough students Ian Frith and Stephen Cavey were 70th and 100th.

Second claim member Peter Tucker won the Wilmington 10km in 34.25 with Kieth Duffy Penny 147th and Ramon Saiz 344th.

At the Barns Green Half Marathon, Andy Tucker was the first Club member to finish. He was 54th in a time of 83.55. Others to finish were Gary Cook 81st, Adrian Stocks 153rd, Julie Reynolds 209th, Dick Griffin 405th, and Justine Eastbury 437th.

Steve Pairman was the Club’s first finisher at the latest 5km parkrun at Norman Park. He was 8th in a time of 20.12 with Rob Brown 12th, Joshua Dowling 14th, Dick Griffin 25th, Jessica Keene 51st and Iain Swatton 108th. Further afield Peter Hamilton was 10th in the Newcastle 5km parkrun.

Attention this coming weekend is focused on the National Cross Country Relays which take place at Berryhill Park in Mansfield. Last year the Senior Mens team won silver medals in a hotly contested race which was by Bedford and County. This year they aim to go one better with three of last years quartet, Scott Overall, Michael Skinner and Andy Rayner set to compete, plus first year Senior Alex Bruce Littlewood who is in fine form having finished second in both Kent Cross Country League races this Winter. The Club will also be fielding teams in the other age group races.

Top of Page


26/10/10

Scott Overall was not only the first Briton to finish in the BUPA Great South Run at Portsmouth , he was the first European as well. In a race won by World Cross Country champion Joseph Ebuya, the Blackheath & Bromley athlete set a new personal best for the 10 mile event finishing in 4th place in 47.37, four seconds ahead of Scotland ’s Andrew Lemoncello. His previous best time was 48.00 set in the same race last year. A little further down the field Richard Hall finished in 225th place in 65.53.

Up in Birmingham Jack Swallow broke the 70 minute barrier for the first time as he timed 69.52 in the EDF Energy Half Marathon. This gave the Birmingham University student 17th place overall.

Closer to home, all age groups from the Club were in action at the latest Kent League fixture of the season at Somerhill School, Tonbridge. First home in the Senior Mens race was Alex Bruce Littlewood replicating his second place from the opening fixture. Andy Rayner continued his return to fitness in third. Together with Alex Gibbins (7th) and David McKinlay (15th) they finished second in the four to score team race. They were also second in the 12 to score contest thanks to Eamonn Prendergast (24th), Jamie Darling (28th), Ross Braden (33rd), Brendan McShane (75th), Mark Ellison (94th), Andy Lawes (97th), James Donaldson (99th) and Chris Pike (100th).

Joint team managers Jennie Butler (7th) and Jane Bradshaw (12th) were the first two finishers in the Senior womens race and with Sarah Belaon 24th and Sara Elmqvist 25th the they were 3rd in the team contest. Carolyna Jones Baldock and Anne Cilia provided good back up in 47th and 49th.

Danielle Critchley, Krystal Galley and Michelle Fewster took the first three places in the under 20 womens race which gave them the team title but there were no Club members in the Junior Mens race.

Will Mercer was the first home for the Club in the under 17 mens race. He finished in 14th place. Robert Yates in 19th and Chris Miles in 24th ensured the Club were fourth in the team race. For the women Catherine Brook was 15th.

There was another good showing in the younger age groups with team victories in the under 15 and under 13 races girls races.

Kate Curran was second in under 15s race. Saffron Salih was 7th and Lucy Sidey 9th and they won the team contest by a single point. Sonia Woolhouse was 17th, Bethany Frost 21st and Holly Fletcher 23rd. The boys team finished 6th led home by William Fuller in 21st with Richard Webb 24th and Henry Chong 25th.

Georgina Taylor was the Club's other individual winner. She was first in the under 13s age group in 10.50, leading the team to victory with Niamh Bridson Hubbard 2nd (10.54) and Charlotte Rhule 7th . There were plenty of other good performances with Jessica Keen 12th, Shannon Riskey 13th, Mary Guy 20th, Holly Warman, returning from injury, 30th and Elizabeth Ibidunni, with a good sprint finish in 31st.

What the boys lack in numbers they made up for in quality as Bailey Stickings finished in 4th with Charlie Davis 16th.

Graham Coates was the Club’s first finisher in the latest Bromley 5km park run at Norman Park. He finished in 4th place with Dick Griffin 11th and Iain Swatton 89th. At the Emer Casey Memorial 10km at Brockwell Park, Luke Brent was 61st, Kirsty Philp 64th and Nicholas Merritt 82nd.

A number of Club members took part in the Beachy Head Marathon. Details to follow.

Blackheath & Bromley caters for all ages, abilities and disciplines. For further information on your particular interest please e-mail enquiries@bandbhac.org.uk Alternatively leave details on the Club answer phone service on 020 8462 3115.

Top of Page


19/10/10

A solid team performance saw Blackheath & Bromley's senior men finish in 23rd position in the National 6 stage road relay at Sutton Coldfield. Highlight was the performance of Scott Overall who moved the team up from 53rd to 27th on the third stage. His time of 17.05 was the fourth fastest of the day and was actually just two seconds slower than the quickest.

Ben Harding ran 18.56 on the opening leg to come in 55th and James Poole with 18.58 edged them up to 53rd before Overall's third stage effort.

Alex Bruce Littlewood moved up to 23rd with 18.16 and youngest member of the team Phil Sesemann got the Club to its highest place of the day as he moved to 21st with 18.39. Alex Gibbins slipped back a couple of places on the anchor leg with 19.16.

It was a good team effort as they were the first Kent team to finish and the 70 plus teams who competed had to qualify to be at Sutton Coldfield. With Mike Skinner and Andy Rayner back in training, the squad will be looking for a good result in the forthcoming National Cross Country relays which take place on the 6th of November. Last year they won silver medals.

The Senior women were also prominent. Bryony Proctor ran a good first leg to close in 11th place with a time of 15.02. Elaine Murty moved up into the top 10 as she closed in 9th on the second stage. Joint team captain Jennie Butler slipped to 17th with 17.03 before Carolyna Jones Baldock timed 18.57 on the anchor leg.

The following day was the turn of the youngsters to compete. The best team result came from the under 15 girls trio of Kate Curran, Lucy Sidey and Saffron Salih. Kate got the team off to a fine start on the opening stage closing in 5th place in 14.17. This was to prove the 7th fastest time of the day. Despite a useful 16.06 Lucy slipped to 16th on the second stage before Saffron shot back up to 11th with a time of 15.14. Samantha Leighton ran 16.59 for the B team.

The under 17 men produced another solid team performance. Quickest was first leg runner Will Mercer who clocked 13.09 to close 49th. Rob Yates moved up to 41st with 13.21 before Chris Miles anchored the team home in 34th place with a time of 13.12. Tom Greenhill ran 13.51 for an incomplete B team.

Henry Chong was 48th on the opening stage in the under 15 boys race with a time of 14.21. Thomas Desborough closed in 52nd on the second leg with 15.51 before Will Ruiz brought the trio home in 43rd with 14.35. Josh Dowling ran 15.56 for an incomplete B team.

Plenty of other athletes from the Club have been in action in various races in the last few days.

Second claimer Peter Tucker was 10th in the Cabbage Patch 10 mile road race in 53.27. At the Abingdon Marathon Tony Crowder was comfortably under the three hour mark as he timed 2.58.07 to finish in 77th place. Colin Poole continued his prodigious appetite for the distance finishing as first over 70 in a time of 4.50.46.

Others opted for just half the distance with Kevin May first home for the Club at the Maidstone Half Marathon in 80.26. Gareth Evans was 18th, Chris Gentle 45th, Peter Burford 79th and Lisa Page 102nd.

Dan Ryan finished second in the latest Bromley 5km park run at Norman Park. He timed 18.20 with Gary Cook 10th, Rob Brown 18th, Iain Swatton 33rd and Molly Dent 63rd.

This Saturday sees the second round of Kent League races at Somerhill Park, Tonbridge. All age groups will be competing. Those seeking something a little longer will be in action in the Beach Head Marathon

Top of Page


13/10/10

Montell Douglas finished her season on a high as she was one of the England 4x100 metre relay quartet who won gold at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi. Taking over from Katherine Endacott she had a great run on the second leg handing over to Laura Turner before Abi Oyepitan brought the team safely home in first place in 44.19.

Individually the Blackheath and Bromley athlete made it through to the semi final of the 100 metres. She was third in her heat in 11.74 and was quicker in the semi where she timed 10.62. However, this was not enough to qualify the British record holder for the final.

The Club’s Senior womens team made a bright start to the Kent League season with a win in the opening event at Sparrows Den, West Wickham. Joint team manager Jennie Butler led from the front as she was the Club’s first finisher in fourth place, just one second ahead of fifth. Fran Green continued her return to racing with a useful 7th place and the Club’s other joint manager, Jane Bradshaw, completed the scoring in 11th place to give the Club a five point victory over second place Invicta East Kent.

Promisingly for the Winter season ahead, the squad has good depth with Sara Elmqvist finishing 21st, Sarah Belaon 30th, Ella Fisher 34th, and Hannah Garcia, who is still an under 20, in 40th. With others waiting in the wings the Club feature prominently in League and Championship races in forthcoming months.

The Senior men did not fare so well in the team contest finishing in fourth but the Club were prominent up front as Alex Bruce Littlewood had a good run to finish in second place in 32.41. Back from injury, Andy Rayner worked his way through the field to place 12th and Alex Gibbins (16th) and Richard Hall (36th) completed the scoring quartet. The Club were 2nd in the 12 to score thanks to Martin Airey (39th), Richard Daniel (61st), Brendan McShane (74th), Jonathan Halls (79th), Mick Jones (82nd), Andrew Lawes (85th), Ian Taylor (89th) and James Donaldson (103rd).

There was a one-two in the under 20 womens race courtesy of Michelle Fewster and Danielle Critchley with times of 14.51 and 15.06 respectively. No team scored in this race and the Club did not have any Junior men competing. However, the under 17 womens trio of Amber Reed (4th), Jessica Jones (9th) and Catherine Brooks (11th) finished 2nd in the team race. Will Mercer led the men home in 9th place and with Chris Miles 10th and Rob Yates 13th, they were third in the team competition.

There was a very encouraging showing by the youngest age groups of the Club both in quality and in numbers. In the under 15s age group Kate Curran finished in 4th place and with Saffron Salih 5th and Sonia Woolhouse 9th, the team came second. For the boys Will Ruiz led the squad home in 15th with Henry Chong 22nd and William Fuller 23rd. They were 5th in the team contest.

The second team win of the day came in the under 13 girls race where Georgina Taylor won in 9.45 with Niamh Bridson Hubbard second in 9.56. Charlotte Rhule put in a fine sprint over the last 300 metres moving up a number of places to finish 8th with 10.22 and help to secure the team victory by just three points. Just as pleasing were the number and quality of the other athletes competing with Jessica Keen 11th, Shannon Riskey 12th, Holly Warman 28th, Elizabeth Ibidunni 31st , Leah Everson 34th and Molly Dent 36th.

Similarly the boys put up a good display and finished second in the team contest led home by Bailey Stickings in 6th place. Thomas Powell 7th, and Remi Ullah in 13th completed the scoring with good support from Charlie Davis in 17th and Kai Salih 23rd.

The Club’s athletes have been in action in a variety of local races in recent days. Most prominent of these was Russell Bentley who won the Self Transcendence 10km in Battersea Park. His time of 33.20 was nearly two and a half minutes quicker than the runner up.

Fran Green was back in action the day after the Kent League finishing in 42nd place in the Lexus Croydon 10km in a time of 42.19.

Gary Cook was the Club’s first finisher at the latest Bromley parkrun 5km at Norman Park. He finished third in 19.23 with Dick Griffin 22nd in 22.47 and Iain Swatton 85th in 33.35.

Second claimer Peter Tucker was second in the Chislehurst Chase over 10km in a time of 36.48. Steve Pairman (44.04), Andrew Lawes (45.23) and Chris Pike (46.52) also made the top 50 placings.

Niamh Bridson Hubbard was the runaway winner of the childrens 2km race, despite the handicap of running in a tutu and having raced in the Kent League the previous day.

This weekend the attention turns to Sutton Coldfield where the National road relays take place. The Senior men and women will be action on Saturday with the young athletes competing on Sunday.

Top of Page


6/10/10

Alex Bruce Littlewood was the runaway winner of the Blackheath & Bromley 5 mile cross country championship at West Wickham. The 20 year old Portsmouth University student won by nearly a minute and a half in an excellent time of 28.24 considering the tough course and the fact that it is actually over five miles.

The race is one of the oldest in the world, first having been contested in 1880, and the list of winners engraved on the trophy is a who's who of past and present members.

Alex Gibbins was second in 29.51 while David McKinlay showed some promising early Winter form as he got the better of Peter Tucker to finish in third in 29.55.

First in the womens race was Jane Bradshaw who was 15th overall in 35.46 with youngster Amber Reed in second (37.19) and Julie Reynolds third (38.01). Amber was first in the Junior Womens race with Claire Parkin second and Melody Kane third.

Will Mercer had a fine run to win the Junior Mens race. He was 5th overall with a time of 32.04 with Tom Greenhill second and Josh Dowling third.

The race featured the second of the nine race Bennett Cup Handicap series which runs throughout the Winter. Winner on this occasion was David Leal with Claire Parkin second and Justine Eastbury third. Leader overall at the moment is Sarah Elmqvist on 102 with Melody Kane and Andy Lawes joint second on 99 points. With 60 points available to the winner of each event there is still everything to play for and, with another five people over 80 points, there is no doubt the pack will shuffle again in the forthcoming weeks.

Further afield Glen Turner competed in the Warsaw Marathon in Poland and was delighted to go under three hours. He timed 2.57.43 and finished in 73rd place.

On the roads at home Tony Crowder was the Club’s first finisher at the Dulwich 10km. He came 30th in a time of 37.17. Fran Green was the Club’s first woman home. She was 92nd overall and the 8th female in a time of 42.30. Others to finish were Colin McEntee (181st), Kirsty Philip (228th) and Nicholas Merritt (283rd).

Keith Ewing was quicker than all these at the Southend 10km where he finished 31st in 36.18. Iain Swatton was 121st in the latest 5km parkrun at Norman Park.

This weekend all age groups from the Club will be in action in the first Kent League races of the season at Sparrows Den, West Wickham The first race is at 12.00 midday.

Top of Page


Site designed and maintained by robin-web.co.uk