Hailsham, Eastbourne and Hastings athletes produce fine finishes in road and cross-country races

Two members took part in the Sussex Downs Half marathon.

Starting from Plumpton racecourse, the 21k course took runners up and over the beautiful South Downs.

With challenging climbs and picturesque views, Hailsham Harrier Michelle Hollands was joined by friend and team-mate Felicity Williams to celebrate her 50th birthday weekend.

The ladies crossed the finish line together in 2:48:04.

Along a blustery Brighton seafront, the rain stopped and the sun shone for Harriers duo Karen Breese and Maria Stanford as they joined 1,200 runners to race the Brighton 10k.

Both ladies put in fantastic performances with Karen finishing in 1:02:43 and Maria in 1:08:30.

Up the road in Crowborough, 18 Harriers joined local clubs to run the 35th Crowborough 10k and 5k on Sunday morning.

In the 5k event, Ross Brocklehurst and partner Aislinn Darvell made short work of the undulating course to take the win for the men and the ladies with spectacular times.

Ross ran 18:04 and Aislinn 20:47. Don Currie finished in 23:42, claiming first in age.

In the 10k, which forms part of the Sussex Grand Prix set of races, Hailsham Harriers had one of the largest team turnouts of the day.

Men's captain Carl Barton was the first Harrier home in 41:38, followed by Lianne Leakey, who was third place lady and first V35 in 43:03, with Los Burrett hot on her heels in 43:21.

Ladies captain Helen O'Sullivan finished as first V45 in 46:21 while Dan Shipton put on a strong performance on the Crowborough hills to finish in 48:43.

Audrey Haddon 49:14, Andy Ruffell 51:18, Chris Little 51:51 and Gary Smith all finished with seconds of each other as they sprinted up the final hill.

Doug Wood 55:04, Sam Neame 55:23 and Dean Layen 56:25 looked strong as they crossed the line, this being their first time on the course.

Frances Delves in 57:19 took the win in the ladies’ V70 category, while Victoria Little 57:20 and Alan Hide 1:08:23 completed the magnificent Harriers team effort.

Hailsham Harriers are a friendly running club for seniors and juniors. If you would like to find out more, please visit hailsham-harriers.org.uk

EASTBOURNE ROVERS

It was a busy cross country weekend for the Eastbourne Rovers juniors when some competed in the second Sussex Cross Country League fixtures at Ardingly and others made the journey to the British Cross Challenge in Milton Keynes.

The British Cross Challenge is a league of four events attracting many of the best athletes nationally.

The race was great preparation for the young Rovers athletes leading into the South of England championships on December 10 in Oxford and the inter-counties final in Loughborough in March.

Fin Lumber-Fry was the first Eastbourne Rover to race and he didn’t disappoint placing well up the field in fourth, just 10 seconds behind second place.

Raya Petrova ran superbly in her first race at this level finishing third, with her team-mate Freda Pearce also running strongly in fifth.

These performances are particularly impressive as it is their first year in the under-15 age category.

Fintan Pearce held his own to finish a credible 48th in possibly the strongest field of the day which also had an international race run within it.

James Stephen also ran well in the men’s senior race and it was undoubtedly a great experience for his racing season to come.

Eastbourne Rovers coach Chris Voice was at the event with his athletes and said: “I am very proud of how maturely they all raced.

"It was a great experience for them to run in such a big event and will prepare them well for the upcoming events where many will be representing Sussex.”

HY RUNNERS

It was another busy weekend of events for members of HY Runners.

In the South Downs National Park, the Sussex Downs Half Marathon offered stunning trail running. Danny Cornford 2:00:02, Stephen Cornford 2:33:50, Lisa Buchanan 2:33:58 and Jenna Harmer 2:35:14 ran well for HY.

Danny said: “I enjoyed it. Hills and mud in a time I’m made up with. What’s not to love?”Taking part in the 12.5k race were Stephen Gates 58:17 and Sonnii Pine 1:24:21. Stephen’s efforts ensured he secured an impressive 2nd place on the podium.On the same day, David Ervine showcased his talent at Hastings Parkrun, coming first in 16:01 before heading back out on the course to rack up a few more training miles with his second unofficial entry completed in 16:10.

Other club Parkrun results were as follows: Michael Sanders 19:04, Terry Puxty 19:35, Jethro Atherall 19:45, Stewart Ide 21:24, Matthew Harmer 21:29, Glenn Cooper 22:30, Quintin Askes 22:55.Carl Adams travelled to Italy to compete in the Verona Marathon. Adams finished in a brilliant 2:45:21 for 16th overall, third in his age category.A flat, fast Brighton 10k tempted Joe Moore, who completed the course in 42:50 – his fastest 10k for two years.The club are celebrating news that Isabella Buchanan, Megan Hopkins-Parry and Kitty Morgan had been selected to run for Sussex in the South of England U13 Inter Counties in Oxford on December 10.

Head coach Terry Skelton congratulated the girls, saying: “Fantastic - well done girls, hard work pays off.”