Surrey Masters Cross-Country Championships

Striders of Croydon produced some excellent performances in the Surrey Masters Cross-Country Championships, held in unusually warm conditions at Nonsuch Park on Saturday. Pride of place went to the club’s over-60s. Matthew Stone ran very well to place second in the M60 race, completing the 6300-metre course in 23 minutes 37. Steve Corfield also ran well to place third (24:59) while Jon Dean was eleventh (26:52). This gave Striders silver medals in the over-60 team competition, which is the first time that Striders have won team medals in any age-group in the Surrey Cross-Country Championships.

Striders also had two other individual medallists, with Consuelo Kennefick placing third in the W50 race (26:47) and Robert Zietz placing third in the M65 race (28:26). In the M70 age-group, Keith Simpson placed fourth (36:13) while David Hoben was sixth (42:29).

In the W45 race, Selena Wong was 14th (32:12) and Jadwiga Brzask-Makiela 19th (38:55). Claire Reid, making her cross-country debut, placed 14th in the W55 age-group (50:04). Striders placed fourth in the women’s over-45 team event. Striders had three runners in the W40 age-group, with Nikki Javan placing 15th (29:48), Cindy Siu 16th (30:40) and Yasmin Anderson 23rd (35:16). They were fifth in their team event.

In the M40 race, over 9300 metres, Tatsuya Okamoto ran well to place sixth (34:54) with Erik Schrijnemaekers 13th (38:05). In the M50 race, Justin Macenhill was tenth (39:01) with Andy Perks 14th (40:57). Stephen Kennefick was 31st in the M45 race (44:52). Earlier in the day, Striders had 87 finishers in the various weekly parkruns.

In the RunThrough Chase The Moon 10K at Battersea on Wednesday evening, Peter Johnson was first in the M55 age-group, placing 43rd overall (42:17).