Scorchio!
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
24 MAY 2026
It’s going to be hot all week, so if you make it to the track tomorrow, you’re invited to the post-track social at 8pm to cool off and chat with other members.
Entries are open for the Ron Hale Games on Sunday July 5th, multiple track and field events. See below for signup details, and if you’re available please volunteer to help out – these events can only happen if people contribute.
In other events, we had a few runners in Edinburgh for the marathon and half marathon. While not as hot as London, it was certainly hard going for the runners up there. Callum Anderson was 5th placed in 2:37, a terrific result, and Hayley Ann Cherry was 10th woman (2nd VW35) in 3:06. Paul McCrone finished in 3:53, and Katie Good (87:25) and Sally Urquhart (1:44) ran the half.
Much further afield, Che Compton ran the spectacular Cape Town marathon in 2:40:37, which must have been a great experience!
Enjoy the hot weather, take care in the sun, and hope to see you at the track tomorrow evening!
The annual Ron Hale Open will be held at the Alex Yee Arena on Sunday 5 July. We will have 100m, 300m (juniors only), 400m, 3000m and hurdles, plus high jump and long jump.
Do enter if you want to compete, try an event, or just set a good time or mark.
Entries are open now, sign up here
We will need lots of volunteers to put this on, helping with putting out hurdles, crowd control, registration, lap counting, pit raking, and plenty more. If you’re available on the day, please contact Richard Giles or Dan Ansell to offer your services.
Our regular thrower and jumper James Bowler competed in the most events, totalling 5 across the day. It was great to see James joined by some keen members of Adrian’s group who were prepped for the day by Nicky Hayes. Thank you Nicky for the throws training and to Narciso, Rob and Tom for all adding to the final team score.
Good luck to all our junior athletes doing exams at the moment, we hope to see you at the track through the summer. We had great results from all our U18s and U20s: Robin Clarke came 3rd in the 200m (24.24) gaining 8 points throughout the day.
Bert Royale (U18) bagged a PB in 1500m (4:17), coming in first for the B strings. Bert really worked through the pack in the 4 x 400m relay, in a team alongside Louis Holley (U18), Olly Buck and Joe Hartley, who saved the team by stepping in last minute after winning the SC. Isaac Parker won the 1500m A string (4:06.51).
Nic Chevis also stepped in last minute for the strong 100m mens relay team after 3 other events.
Mei Eden-Green (U18) competed in 4 events with PBs in 200m and high jump. Eliza Pitt (U18) came 3rd in the women’s SC A string also with a PB (8:41.46) followed by Vic Cartwright winning in the B string (8:59.23), also a PB.
Both Mei and Eliza made up our 400m relay team with Lin Skinner and Aisling Ahern. Lin raced multiple events too including 1500m (5:16.46) and PBs in 800m (2:32.59) and 400m (69.86). Aisling won both her B string races 1500m (5:12.92) and a debut in the 800m (2:39.16). We had a really strong turn out for the women’s middle distance events.
All results are now up on Power of 10 and the SAL website
A massive thank you to Laurie for capturing the event: https://laurieoliver.pixieset.com/saleltham/
All volunteer officials and competitors earn points. All dates are listed below and in the sign up sheet. The next fixture is 21st June in Watford: we would love to see you there.
On Wednesday 20th May, 30 athletes proudly represented the mighty blue vest at the annual Beckenham Relays – and what a night it was for Kent AC.
We’ll start with our wonderful women’s teams. Kent AC fielded four women’s teams this year, and they certainly didn’t disappoint, winning the competition yet again.
Leading the way for the A team was multiple world record holder Clare Elms, alongside Claire Oxlade, Karina Box and Sally Urquhart on the opening leg. Clare produced a superb first leg to put the women firmly in the driving seat, running the fastest women’s leg of the event, setting the tone for another brilliant evening. Claire, Karina and Sally were all delighted with their performances after strong opening runs. On leg two, 800m specialist Molly O’Connor extended the A team’s advantage with another impressive run.
Victoria Cartwright, Nicky Hayes and Jo Cartledge also ran strongly for the other women’s teams. Bringing it home on the final leg was Alexa Parker, who has been a key part of Kent AC’s Beckenham Relays success over recent years. Alexa guided the team to a magnificent fifth consecutive title – an incredible achievement for the club. Flo Ingram, Jo Wint and Suze Spalding also produced excellent final-leg performances for the remaining women’s teams. The women will now look ahead to next month’s Dulwich Relays, where they’ll be aiming to secure a fifth consecutive title there as well. Congratulations to all involved, and best of luck for Dulwich.
On the men’s side, Kent AC fielded six teams in another hugely competitive contest featuring local rivals Tonbridge, Dulwich, Blackheath and Bromley & Petts Wood. Joe Vis took on the opening leg for the men’s A team, handing over in 6th place after a strong run against quality opposition. Also running opening legs for Kent were Rupert Bedford, Joshua Correia, Jules Gevers and Martin Morgan.
Next up was Jake Simmonds, who found himself locked in a close battle with Tonbridge. Jake produced a brilliant 13:17 split on leg two to pull Kent AC back into the top three positions. Hugh Stickland, Michael Gibson, Pertrice and Samuel Wilcock also ran excellent second legs, showing the club’s impressive strength in depth.
The A team baton was then handed to Callum Fraser for the final leg. Having raced previous relays and Assembly League fixtures at Beckenham, Callum’s course knowledge would prove vital as he battled against Tonbridge’s Steve Strange, a sub-15-minute athlete. As Joe and Jake waited at the top of the final hill, the tension built. The lead bike appeared, with Dulwich taking victory and Blackheath & Bromley securing second place. Steve Strange held around 20 metres over Callum heading into the closing stages, but Callum dug deep and closed hard all the way to the line. Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite enough on this occasion, with the men’s A team finishing a highly respectable 4th overall. Strong final-leg performances also came from Jacob Fuller, Roger Beardsworth, Andy Wright, Jim Lynch and Abduallh.
Well done to everyone who raced, supported and signed up – another fantastic evening for Kent AC.
Despite high temperatures, soaring up to 29 degrees, our athletes performed well in both track and field. Whilst final results are awaited, we can report that U16 boys were first in 100m relays. U14 girls Phoebe Hall and Evie Atanda PB’d in 100m (13.86 and 13.76). U14 boys Vwede Fydoro -Okiti and Otis Atlee PB’d on the track (13.4 and 13.22 secs in the 100m), and in the Field, Matthew Egling achieved a PB in javelin (14m) and Otis Atlee in High Jump (1.40m).
Most importantly, all our participants demonstrated the team spirit, sporting attitude and individual responsibility that is the hallmark of Kent AC juniors. Well done everyone!
Narciso from C Group has proposed a series of form/technique training workshops during June and July. What is being proposed is a training block of sessions to be held on Thursday evenings (same time as usual) focusing on form and technique as a summer camp, for middle distance/endurance runners. If there is sufficient interest – 10-15 people committing to attend regularly – (in order to gain meaningful benefits), coach Ted has kindly agreed to design and run these sessions. There is also an option of running it on Sunday mornings but this can be finalised once we have an indication of interest. People can indicate interest by sending a WhatsApp to Narciso 07476721272.
May
26 – Post-track Social
June
4 – Assembly League – Crystal Palace
21 – SAL – Watford
24 – Dulwich Relays
27 – KYAL – U14/U16 – Dartford
30 – Post-track Social
July
2 – Assembly League – Sutcliffe Park
5 – Ron Hale Open – Alex Yee Arena
19 – SAL – Cambridge
28 – Post-track Social
August
6 – Assembly League – Victoria Park
8 – SAL – Dartford
23 – KYAL – U12 – Tonbridge
September
3 – Assembly League – Beckenham Place Park
10 – Late Summer Meet – Alex Yee Arena
29 – Post-track Social
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Buy your track pass here.
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:00 – 20:45
Thursday 17:00 – 20:30
Sunday 09:00 – 11:30
Please note that individuals are permitted to do their own sessions during club opening times, but coached group sessions continue to take priority.
Track Pass – Juniors
Please purchase your £6.50 junior monthly track pass in advance here. When purchasing the track pass can parents/guardians please enter the athlete’s name when completing the transaction.
The Alex Yee Arena has opening hours dedicated to the public. While during these times the Kent AC track pass is not valid, members can pay for an individual session.
Session times are:
Monday: 07:00 -15:00
Tuesday – Thursday: 1300 -1700
Friday: 07:00 – 15:00
Saturday – Sunday: 09:00-15:00
Price:
Adult resident: £2.70
Adult non resident: £3.00
Junior (U16): £1.30
The Kent AC track pass continues to be required for training on Tues/Thurs evenings and Sunday mornings.
Track staff have encouraged people to double check the opening hours before their training session, as they may occasionally be closed for school sport days and football friendlies. Hours can be checked here. This will likely suit members who can’t make training sessions but would like to train in the morning/lunchtime/evening.
Pay as you go fees can either be paid via cash to the desk or using the Better app (note: staff are working to add the sessions to the app).
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