Athletics round-up: Anderson impresses on road 10K debut in Valencia

HERNE HILL HARRIERS

Herne Hill Harriers’ Phoebe Anderson travelled to Valencia to run her first race since being crowned as European U23 women’s cross-country champion in December and produced an impressive performance in her road 10km debut on Sunday.

The 22-year-old Putney resident finished an excellent 18th in a world class women’s field at the Castellon 10km, clocking a fast 32:23, writes Geoff Jerwood.

Her time has only been bettered by one other Harriers female athlete, that being club record-holder and New Zealand international Georgie Grgec.

Frustratingly for Anderson her time in Spain was just three seconds outside the qualifying mark for consideration for the Great Britain team for the European Road Running Championships in Belgium in April.

She will now be looking to get that standard at the trial at the Pulford 10km in Cheshire on 23rd March and her training will be geared towards this target.

Other Herne Hill athletes were in road racing action locally in Battersea Park on Saturday morning, where the RunThrough 5km and 10km and the more elite Top Flight 10km were all staged, with a number recording personal best times.

In the Top Flight 10km Lewis Laylee was 26th with a PB 30:45, Tom Austin 42nd with 31:29, Ross Brown 84th with a PB 33:05 and Ryan Willmott 92nd with a PB 33:37.

Chloe Wright finished third female in the RunThrough 5km with a PB 19:00, tantalisingly close to her sub 19 minutes target.

In the RunThrough 10km a time of 34:50 saw Elevedin Bektic place 15th in a big field of runners.

HERCULES WIMBLEDON

There was road action at home and overseas with Jonathan Cornish leading the way in Northern Ireland at the Armagh International 5km, where he clocked a speedy 14:20.

The event broke the world record for the most amount of sub-16 minute finishers at 215 and is generally held to be the most competitive event over the distance in the UK, writes George Mallett.

Cornish’s time saw him place 54th as the race was won by American Andrew Colley in a new course record of 13:33.

Cornish was 14 seconds outside his own lifetime best, the second best in Hercules’ history, ran in August 2023 at the Mid-Cheshire Summer 5km.

At the Bramley 2010 on Sunday, so-called because there are both 20 and 10-mile races held on the same day in Berkshire, Freddie Slemeck ran 1:51:58 to finish third in the 20-mile race.

Slemeck used the race as a training run in the build up to London Marathon 2025, a race where last year he ran 2:23:31 for 35th in the championship race.

Athletes competed at the TopFlight Battersea Park 10km, an elite-only race, on Saturday.

Alex Milne, still returning from illness, was 18th in 30:26, someway outside his own best of 29:45, achieved last November at the Fulham 10km.

Ed Mallett ran 31:35 in 44th, nine seconds outside his best with second-claim Josh Lally finishing in 47th, with a PB of 31:37.

Tom Drayton, in 63rd, was two seconds short of his own best in 32:13.

Alice McCormack ran 1:26:36, a PB and good enough for eighth female at the Hampton Court Half Marathon.