THE LAST POST!

AFTER MORE THAN THREE YEARS I HAVE DECIDED TO STOP PRODUCING THIS ATHLETICSNORTHWALES BLOG.

 HAVING JUST HAD MY 70TH BIRTHDAY I AM RETIRING AS SECRETARY OF PRESTATYN RUNNING CLUB (after forming the club 33 years ago) , AS CHAIRMAN OF THE NORTH WALES REGIONAL ATHLETICS COUNCIL AND AS A RACE REFEREE/ADJUDICATOR.

 I HOPE TO  FIND A LITTLE MORE TIME TO GET IN SOME RUNNING.

 THANKS TO THOSE OF YOU WHO HELPED KEEP ME INFORMED ABOUT YOUR ACTIVITIES AND  FORWARDED RACE RESULTS TO ME. THANKS, TOO, FOR THE  WORDS OF APPRECIATION.

 I SHALL REMAIN INTERESTED IN WHAT'S GOING ON BUT AM DETERMINED TO PROVE BERNIE JONES WRONG WHEN HE SAID OF ME: "HE'LL NEVER GIVE UP". 

Wrexham Festival

WESTON TAKES TITLE AT THE DOUBLE

Wrexham's Daniel Weston completed a double in the Wrexham Marathon, displaying remarkable consistency as he did so.

 In March, 2015, he won the inaugural race in 2-35.59 and followed it up with victory in the Chester MBNA Marathon in 2-35.11.  This time the Wrexham race incorporated the North Wales championship and Weston took the title in 2-34.05.

 In second place, in 2-38.22, was Russell Bentley (Eryri), who had competed in the Pipe Dream fell race less than 24 hours earlier. His clubmate Andrea Rowlands was the ladies' champion and first in the open race with a time of 3-02.04.

 Wrexham Half was won by Liam Crane (Blackpool and Fylde), in 73 .37, with veteran Vicky Williams first lady home in 89.33.

 The 20-mile race held at the same time was won by Martin Green (NWRR), who is training for next month's London Marathon. While he was winning in Wrexham his wife Carla was winning her class in the Anglesey Half.

Full results can be found on the TDL Events website.

Anglesey Half

VAUGHAN AND OLDROYD GIVE REPEAT SHOW

The Anglesey half-marathon proved to be a repeat of the Rhyl 10-mile race of two weeks ago, with victories for Alun Vaughan (Eryri) and Hannah Oldroyd (Saltaire).

 Vaughan was made to work hard for his title by Bangor student Callum Rowlinson (Sale), coming home 28 seconds clear in 69.43, while Oldroyd, a prolific competitor, had things much more her own way. She crossed the line in 81.27, over 10 minutes clear of runner-up Elliw Haf (Eryri).

 The full results can be found on the TDL Events website.

 

Pipe Dream

BID FOR REPEAT WIN GOES DOWN THE PIPES

A bid by Matthew Roberts to retain his title in the Pipe Dream race at Dolgarrog ended in disappointment when he and a couple of the leading runners went off-course.

 By the time they realised their mistake it was too late and Mark Davies (NWRR) took full advantage to claim victory .

 There was an outstanding run by Eryri's Miranda Grant on her return, as she finished a superb eighth overall, while Sarah Barnwell broke Ellie Salisbury's L50 course record.

 Results: 1 M Davies (NWRR, M40) 38.46, 2 S Edwards (Buckley, M40) 39.38, 3 P Jones (Eryri, M40) 39.50, 4 M Roberts (Calder) 38.51, 5 R Bentley (Eryri) 39.52, 6 M Hulley (Pennine, M40) 40.27. M50: 1 I Warhurst (Pennine) 42.23, 2 J Randell (Meirionnydd) 43.04, 3 T Coleman (ua) 44.56. M60: 1 D Weaver (Eryri) 43.14, 2 A Duncan (Bowland) 44.54, 3 D Bowen (Pennine) 47.20. M70: 1 D Williams (Eryri) 52.52, 2 J Morris (Buckley) 54.14, 3 Y Tridimas (Bowland) 54.20.
 Ladies: 1 M Grant (Eryri) 41.00, 2 L Irvine (Eryri) 43 .41, 3 G Brown (NWRR) 44.08, 4 S Richmond (Pennine) 45.06, 5 H Evans (Buckley) 46.55, 6 S Barnwell (Eryri, L50)  48.00. L40: 1 L Emery-Jones (Eryri) 49.16, 2 N Grobben (Pennine) 50.29, 3 A Williams (Buckley) 56.30. L50: 2 A Purves (ua) 50.12, 3 E Salisbury (Eryri) 54.48.

Welsh XC Champs

MEDALS GALORE FOR NORTH WALES IN SWANSEA

An appeal for more North Wales athletes to travel south for the annual Welsh  cross-country championships produced results not only in quantity but also in quality.

 No fewer than 12 competitors came away from Swansea with medals, once again highlighting the depth of young talent in the region at present.

 The turnout from seniors remained disappointing apart from an Eryri ladies' squad, but Rob Samuel  kept the flag flying with a brilliant run, finishing second to the in-form GB international Dewi Griffiths.

 Cari Hughes (Menai) and Mia Roberts (Deeside) completed a " double" by taking gold two weeks after winning the Welsh Schools' titles, the former once again getting the better of the highly-rated Heidi Davies (Brecon).

 Among the North Wales placings were:-
Boys under 11: 1 Math Thomas (Menai) 6.20, 2 Roman Hodgson (Deeside) 6.23, 13  Josef Morgan (Menai) 7.18, 14 Ioan Oldfield (Ysgol Bryn Coch) 7.21.
 Boys under 13: 1 Osian Perrin (Menai) 11.43, 2 Mike Spill (Eryri) 11.46, 4 James Jones (Dee) 11.59, 9 Cai La Trobe Roberts (Menai) 12.39, 14 Eden Potter (Menai) 13.06.
 Boys under 15: 2 Cedol Dafydd (Menai) 14.49, 2 Ethan Ackroyd (Dee) 15.06, 10 Roland Finnie (Menai) 15.26, 16 Tomos Land (Menai) 16.08, 26 Ifan Oldfield (Wrex) 16.38.
 Men under 17: 3 Oliver Barbaresi (Menai) 18.26, 5 Joseph Crutchley (Maldwyn) 19.27, 10 Cai Linton-Davies (Menai) 20.00.
 Men under 20: 1 Iolo Hughes (Menai) 24.06.
 Senior men: 2 Rob Samuel (Eryri) 36.54, 63 Russ Godwin (Colwyn Bay) 45.57, 109 Clive Edgington (Meir) 51.37.

 Girls under 11: 1 Neisha Roberts (Dee) 6.56, 11 Elen Edwards (Dee) 7.53.
 Girls under 13: 2 Orla Davies (Dee) 12.52, 4 Samia Jones (Menai) 13.07, 11 Rheagan Edwards (Dee) 14.02, 16 Ffion Rees Jones (Menai) 14.15, 18 Georgina Parkinson (Menai)  14.19, 19 Abbi Parkinson (Menai) 14.20, 30 Imogen Owen (Dee) 14.57, 31 Alys Rees Jones (Menai) 15.04.
 Girls under 15: 1 Mia Roberts (Dee) 16.13, 7 Laura Sharp (Dee) 17.18, 21 Swyn Edwards (Menai) 18.56, 29 Ellen Oldfield (Wrex) 19.49, 31 Catrin Donnelly (Menai) 19.52, 38 Lucy Hughes (Menai) 21.29.
Women under 20: 1 Cari Hughes (Menai) 20.45, 10 Emily Kearney (Wirral) 23.29, 13 Eabha Roberts (Menai) 23.52, 18 Martha Owen (Dee) 25.01, 34 Caitlin Howell-Wiliams (Menai) 27.57.
 Senior  women: 9 Sarah Kearney (Wirral, 2nd L40) 30.17, 27 Tammy Lewis-Jones (Eryri) 32.23, 36 Helen Blair (Eryri) 33.49, 48 Annie Williams (Eryri) 35.26 (3rd L55), 50 Hazel Berrett (Buckley) 35.50 (2nd L50) ,57 Chris Birch (Abergele) 36.06 (1st L65), 95 Maggie Oliver (Eryri) 44.02 (3rd L65).

Welsh 10-mile champs

VAUGHAN BREEZES TO RHYL WIN

A strong headwind on the return stage along the promenade was the greatest challenge former Welsh marathon champion Alun Vaughan faced in the Rhyl 10-mile race.

 The event incorporated the Welsh championships and Vaughan (Eryri) had a surprisingly comfortable win as few athletes made the journey from South Wales.

 He finished in 55.54, with second-place Marc Brown (Keswick) 46 seconds behind, but as he had entered on the day the national title went to third-placed Adam Bull (Aberdare).

 First woman home in 65.39 was Hannah Oldroyd (Saltaire), who  holds numerous Parkrun records, and in second place was Myra Jones (Valley Striders), who won the Conwy Parkrun just 24 hours earlier. The Welsh title went to Amie Bagnall (Salford), who was fourth overall.

 The first six men were: 1 A Vaughan (Eryri, M35) 55.44 (chip time), 2 M Brown (Keswick 56.30, 3 A Bull (Aberdare) 57.13, 4 S Sayer (Menai)  57.42, 5 D Weston (Wrexham, M35) 58.42, 6 M Evans (Aberdare) 58.53.

 First six ladies: 1 H Oldroyd (Saltaire) 65.39, 2 M Jones (Valley) 66.44, 3 M Clarke (Telford, L40)  67.06, 4 A Bagnall (Salford) 68.07, 5 T Trueman (Lawley, L45) 70.16, 6 H Carter (Sandbach, L40) 71.03.

 Welsh championships:- U23 men: A Bull (Aberdare). S enior men: 1 Bull, 2 Sayer, 3 Weston. M35: 1 Weston, 2 E Land (Aberystwyth) 62.10, 3 H Owen (Les Croupiers) 68.21. M40: 1 M Green (NWRR) 61.41, 2 A Lewis (A berdare) 64.08, 3 D Blazier (Abergele) 64.43. M45: 1 S Roberts (Buckley) 62.19, 2 M Mayers (Abergele) 72.33, 3 M Witty (Deestriders) 74.51. M50: 1 M Pfeiffer (Brecon) 60.07, 2 R Jones (Shrews) 65.10, 3 M Belshaw (Eryri) 66.59. M55: 1 J Jones (Abergele) 73.27, 2 A Jones (Prestatyn) 77.05. M60: 1 K Slattery (NWRR) 68.51, 2 V Pownall (Abergele) 80.25, 3 C Hunt (Wrecsam Tri) 83.08. M65: 1 M Hayton (NWRR) 77.02, 2 R Jardine (Eryri) 1-52.35. M70: I Roberts (Eryri) 1-59.16. M75: 1 D Gardner (NWRR) 80.16, 2 R Harrison-Jones (Prestatyn) 96.36.
 Ladies U23: Bagnall. Senior ladies: 1 Bagnall, 2 C Green (NWRR) 72.46, 3 R Shipley (Abergele) 74.00. L35: 1 S Beck (Prestatyn) 76.10, 2 J Bancroft (Wrexham) 92.06. L40: 1 Green, 2 H Griffith (NWRR) 85.13, 3 D Jones (Abergele) 94.42. L45: 1 S McIndoe (Driders) 1-42.16, 2 B Goodson (Deestriders) 1-49.24. L50: 1 L Goodson (NWRR) 80.22, 2 C Frost (NWRR) 80.25, 3 K Hatton (NWRR) 80.59. L55: 1 S Jones (Cybi) 83.34, 2 S Calvert (Abergele) 96.49. L70: B Jones (Bro Dysyn ni)  1-42.57. L80: S Symonds (Meirionnydd) 2-47.23.

 Full results can be found on the TDL Events website.

Welsh Schools' XC

BRILLIANT DAY FOR NORTH WALES YOUNGSTERS

The current batch of young North Wales athletes is probably the strongest for many years, and the strength-in-depth was underlined at the Welsh Schools' cross-country championships in Brecon.

 A fine all-round performance earned Eryri region second place overall behind the always-strong Dyfed squad, and there were  numerous superb individual performances.

 Gold medals went to Deeside AC member Mia Roberts (Brynhyfryd, Ruthin, junior girls), Oliver Barbaresi (Friars, Bangor, middle boys) and Cari Hughes (Syr Thomas Jones, Amlwch, senior girls), who claimed the illustrious scalp of GB international Heidi Davies (Llandrindod).

 There were also silver medals for Samia Jones (Syr Hugh Owen, Year 7), Orla Davies (Mold Alun, junior girls), Osian Perrin (Llangefni, junior boys) and Ch ristian Smith (Coleg Cambria, senior boys), and bronze for Joseph Crutchley (Llanidloes, middle boys).

 North Wales athletes who gained top 20 places included:

 Boys Year 7: 11 Louis Lloyd (John Bright) 11.35, 12 Huw Jones (Brynhyfryd) 11.37, 13 Matthew Anthony (Mold Alun) 11.38, 14 Alex Palmer (Darland) 11.39, 17 Ioan Hughes (Moelwyn) 11.44. Team: 3 North East Wales.

 Junior Boys: 2 Osian Perrin (Llangefni) 15.51, 4 Mike Spill (Friars) 15.57, 7 Tomos Land (Dyffryn Conwy) 16.21, 14 James Jones (Argoed) 16.53, 15 Dillon Gill (Welshpool) 16.55, 16 Cai Le Trobe Roberts (Tryfan) 17.10, 20 Lewis Parry (Grango) 17.21. Team: 1 Eryri.

 Middle Boys: 1 Oliver Barbaresi (Friars) 20.05, 3 Joseph Crutchley (Llanidloes) 20.23, 7 Roland Finney (Tryfan) 21.29, 8 Cedol Dafydd (Tryfan) 21.33, 9 Ryan Owen (Dyffryn Nantlle) 21.43. Team: 2 Eryri.

 Senior Boys: 2 Christian Smith (Coleg Cambria) 23.12, 10 Cai Linton (Friars) 24.18, 16 Matthew Pleavin (Coleg Menai) 25.31, 18 Ryan Cain (Syr Hugh Owen) 25.53. Team: 2 Eryri.

Girls Year 7: 2 Samia Jones (Syr Hugh Owen) 11.39, 7 Ellie Small (Hawarden) 12.32, 10 Carys Walcham (Flint) 12.37, 11 Alys Jones (Syr Hugh Owen) 12.46, 12 Eve Scott (Prestatyn) 12.50, 14 Hannah Smith (Mold Alun) 12.58. Team: 3 North East Wales.

 Junior Girls: 1 Mia Roberts (Brynhyfryd) 13.49, 2 Orla Davies (Mold Alun) 14.17, 8 Laura Sharp (Mold Alun) 14.48, 11 Rheagan Edwards (St Richard Gwyn) 15.07, 17 Bethan Davies (Creuddyn) 15.36, 18 Manon Henderson (David Hughes)  15.39. Team: 2 North East Wales.

Middle Girls: 6 Eabha Roberts (Syr Thomas Jones) 18.25, 9 Sophie Paxton (Maelor) 18.49, 10 Holly Roberts (Glan Clwyd) 18.58, 18 Ellie Williams (Morgan Llwyd) 19.56.

Senior Girls: 1 Cari Hughes (Syr Thomas Jones) 18.46, 6 Rhiannon Kamink (Creuddyn) 22.19, 12 Ellis New (Eirias) 24.02, 16 Elen Norris (Friars) 24.28. Team: 1 Eryri.