Photo – Verity Hopkins who ran 2.37.17 at the London Marathon
One of the biggest sporting events of the year, the London Marathon, took place on Sunday, with seventeen finishers being members of Tonbridge Athletic Club.
Verity Hopkins finished 4th of the women, who started with the masses, rather than the small elite field and ran 2.37.17. This was a fourteen-minute improvement from when she won her only other marathon, at Brighton in 2021. Helen Gaunt started with the elite women, following her excellent performance last year and was 4th of the six British women who finished from that start line. Gaunt ran 2.38.40.
Dan Bradley made his marathon debut and despite some cramping issues towards the end ran an excellent 2.29.08. He had run much of the race with teammate Michael Ellis, who finished in 2.37.03, after suffering with a tight hamstring for the final six miles. Ben Shearer, who is a first claim member with Cambridge Harriers, but having relocated to Tonbridge, trains with the club, ran 2.27.12, in the over 40 men’s age group. Amongst the others from Tonbridge AC Fred Damas ran 2.31.49, Charles Adair 2.34.25 and Tim Hill 2.39.36.
The first athletics league match of the season took place on Saturday with the under 13 and 15 squad competing in the Southern Premier Division of the UK Youth Development League, held at Woodford. Tonbridge finished a close-up 5th of the six teams, but will relish the battle this season, competing alongside some of the strongest clubs in the country.
Toby Gwinnell won the under 15 boys’ Discus and Javelin, with throws of 33.03m and 45.89m, whilst Seren Field produced a similar double when winning the under 13 girls’ Shot Put and Javelin, with marks of 8.17m and 32.50m. The other two individual victories came from Victor Watling , with 1.51m in the under 13 boys’ High Jump and Aimee Watts with 4.04.34, in the under 13 girls’ 1200m, both being personal bests.
The under 15 boys’ 4x300m relay squad of Steven Galliard, Sebby Reynolds, Harry Wrigley and Louis Ib won their race in 2.41.40, which was less than a second outside the Tonbridge AC club record.
Elsewhere, a few of the Tonbridge middle distance runners in the under 17 and 20 age groups, raced well to go inside some significant marks. Ollie Head ran 8.57.99 for 3000 metres at Watford, on Wednesday, to run inside nine minutes for the first time. Then at Gillingham on Sunday, five runners ran inside two minutes for 800 metres, as Joseph Hunt won in 1.56.33, from Ethan Rocks 1.56.97 and Jacob Hunt 1.57.49 in one race and Toby Bawtree won another in 1.56.72, where Harrison Fraser recorded 1.59.83. Also, at Gillingham, Ollie White, a T20 category paralympic runner, set a new personal best over 1500 metres of 4.39.73.