It’s all about Beckenham Place Park today, and next week for that matter, when there’s a pleasingly local cross-country race to consider.
Today, however, was Remembrance Sunday, and a fine, crisp autumnal day for Beckenham Running Club’s Charity Trail 10K. All proceeds went to St Christopher’s Hospice and the Royal British Legion. Kent AC runners acquitted themselves well, not least Dame Dibaba, who came in first (having done the same a a matter of routine at Hillyfields parkrun yesterday. Dame’s time today was 36.35). Iona Kane was first woman in 42.14; second woman was Victoria Cartwright in 43.54. Other Kent AC participants included Rebecca Applewhite (59.03) and Sarah Maris-Shaw (1:11.49), with Sarah Young and Sally Urquhart were voluble bystanders supporting their team. Well done, everyone.
Kent & Lewisham women: Rebecca, Victoria, Jane and Sarah
First woman Iona First man Dame
We love to hear your stories and successes to please let us know what races (and runs not races, of course) you’ve participated in. Share your PBs, PTAs (Personal Triumphs against Adversity) and everything in between with the Kent AC community
A BIT OF A KNEES UP
🎄*Kent AC’s Christmas Party*🎄
Yes, it’s that time of year already! A highlight on the club calendar✨
Tickets are £15 including an arrival drink and buffet. Plus-ones very welcome.🥂
The club are hosting the second Surrey League at Beckenham Place Park on 15th November. As well as having a great turnout from members racing on the day, we also need volunteers to help ensure the event runs smoothly.
We need at least six more people to help out at the finish from 12pm – 4pm to cover junior and senior races. Jobs include noting down runner numbers at the end of their race and managing the finish line. Whenever you can help, even if it’s for a small part of the day, your help would be much appreciated.
Please contact Phil Marsden if you can help.
AGM NOTICE
Notice is hereby given of the Annual General Meeting of Kent Athletic Club which will take place at 20:30 on Tuesday 18 November 2025 at the Blythe Hill Tavern
The agenda for the meeting will be circulated later.
Please also note that all Committee posts are up for election each year. While we no longer have any unfilled posts, any post can be contested at the AGM if properly nominated. A full list of committee members will be circulated two weeks prior to the AGM along with the agenda.
The meeting will be held in person and via videolink.
Refreshments will be provided.
RUNNING WITH HAT-TITUDE
Tis the (XC) season for BIG bobble hats, the essential piece of kit for all that chilly pre-and post-cross country hanging about when the next cup of tea seems very far away.
The hat, and other essential Kent AC merch, is available via the online shop. Message Sarah Young on the WhatsApp group for collection.
EVENT CALENDAR
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
18 – AGM – Blythe Hill Tavern
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – Lloyd Park
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
6 – Kent AC Christmas Party – The Honor Oak
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
26 – London Marathon
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
The clocks may have turned back, but the club is very much looking forward with a week of national and personal records across many events. Read on for a run down, and keep reading for details on how you can get involved in the upcoming cross country race on our doorstep in Beckenham Place Park. Winter training is in full swing!
A huge congratulations are in order for Emily Murray, who is now the new Scottish Masters record holder in the VW45 Triple Jump! Wow! This is on the back of her brilliant 9.97m jump in the European Masters Champs in Madeira a few weeks back.
Yesterday saw the Marathon Eryri in Snowdonia, which is described as ‘demanding and spectacular’… which feels an understatement for a race that encircles the highest peak in Wales all in the pouring rain. So well done to Joe Vis for coming home in 3:10:39, Ian Ellwood in 3:13:35, Jen Smith in 3:48:38 and as the 2nd VW45, Joe Derrett in 4:11:13, and Zuzana Nemeckova in 4:21:32.
In sunnier and flatter climates, today was the Valencia Half Marathon, completed by Alex Yee in 61:30, Chris Busaileh in 69:53, and Ivona Gongolova in 1:42:23 – and with that completing the Super Halves series.
Nothing is done by halves… except marathons with quite a few today here in London. Jake Herrera came 3rd overall and 1st V40 in the Thames Path Half Marathon in 73:11, with Adrian Dracup in 86:13. Meanwhile in Maidenhead, Alex Gillespie smashed a PB of 87:31.
We love to hear your stories and successes to please let us know what events you’ve been doing! From PBs to unique events, we would love to share your news with the Kent AC community!
FROM TEMPO TO TINSEL – IT’S PARTY TIME!
🎄*Kent AC’s Christmas Party*🎄
Yes, it’s that time of year already! A highlight on the club calendar✨
Tickets are £15 including an arrival drink and buffet. Plus-ones very welcome!🥂
The club are hosting the second Surrey League at Beckenham Place Park on 15th November. As well as having a great turnout from members racing on the day, we also need volunteers to help ensure the event runs smoothly!
We need at least six more people to help out at the finish from 12pm – 4pm to cover junior and senior races. Jobs include noting down runner numbers at the end of their race and managing the finish line. Whenever you can help, even if it’s for a small part of the day, your help would be much appreciated.
Please contact Phil Marsden if you can help!
AGM NOTICE
Notice is hereby given of the Annual General Meeting of Kent Athletic Club which will take place at 20:30 on Tuesday 18 November 2025 at the Blythe Hill Tavern
The agenda for the meeting will be circulated later.
Please also note that all Committee posts are up for election each year. While we no longer have any unfilled posts, any post can be contested at the AGM if properly nominated. A full list of committee members will be circulated two weeks prior to the AGM along with the agenda.
The meeting will be held in person and via videolink.
Refreshments will be provided.
RUNNING WITH HAT-TITUDE
Tis the (XC) season for BIG bobble hats, the essential piece of kit for all that chilly pre-and post-cross country hanging about when the next cup of tea seems very far away.
The hat, and other essential Kent AC merch, is available via the online shop. Message Sarah Young on the WhatsApp group for collection.
EVENT CALENDAR
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
18 – AGM – Blythe Hill Tavern
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – Lloyd Park
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
6 – Kent AC Christmas Party – The Honor Oak
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
26 – London Marathon
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
Kent AC athletes took the European Masters Championships by storm this week, coming home from Madeira with a host of medals and UK leading times.
Clare Elms lined up for multiple VW60 distance events, taking the win in 19:37 over 5000m and then in 40:25 for the road 10k. In an uncharacteristically hot and humid 8km XC, she added a bronze to her collection in 36:06.
Emily Murray competed in both the long jump and triple jump, scoring a 9.97m PB for 4th place and the new VW45 UK lead in the TJ.
Joe Appiah sprinted his way to gold in the 100mH in 13.96. He added another as he won the long jump in 6.14m and rounded off with bronze in the VM50 4x100m relay, whilst also officiating on his non-competing days!
Medals galore!
With road race season still in full swing, a big congrats to all of you who crossed a finish line this weekend!
Abingdon Marathon
Arejeet Nag – 2:49:23
Matthew Thomas – 2:51:19
James Royston – 3:13:53
Amsterdam Marathon
Liam James – 3:06:00
Lesley Mentink – 4:00:36
Battersea Park Marathon
Paul McCrone – 3:19:28
Great South Run
Vic Buck – 1:07:29
Ronnie Haydon – 1:27:37
Narciso Guerrero – 1:39:03
Yorkshire Marathon
Karina Box – 3:39:23
Post-race grins
The club are hosting the second Surrey League at Beckenham Place Park on 15th November. As well as having a great turnout from members racing on the day, we also need volunteers to help ensure the event runs smoothly!
We need at least six more people to help out at the finish from 12pm – 4pm to cover junior and senior races. Jobs include noting down runner numbers at the end of their race and managing the finish line.
If you can only assist with the senior races, your help would still be much appreciated. Please contact Phil Marsden!
FROM TEMPO TO TINSEL – IT’S PARTY TIME!
🎄*Kent AC’s Christmas Party*🎄
Yes, it’s that time of year already! A highlight on the club calendar✨
Tickets are £15 including an arrival drink and buffet. Plus-ones very welcome!🥂
Notice is hereby given of the Annual General Meeting of Kent Athletic Club which will take place at 20:30 on Tuesday 18 November 2025 at the Blythe Hill Tavern
The agenda for the meeting will be circulated later.
Please also note that all Committee posts are up for election each year. While we no longer have any unfilled posts, any post can be contested at the AGM if properly nominated. A full list of committee members will be circulated two weeks prior to the AGM along with the agenda.
The meeting will be held in person and via videolink.
Refreshments will be provided.
CHILLY WEATHER MERCH
Tis the (XC) season for BIG bobble hats, the essential piece of kit for all that chilly pre-and post-cross country hanging about when the next cup of tea seems very far away.
The hat, and other essential Kent AC merch, is available via the online shop. Message Sarah Young on the WhatsApp group for collection.
EVENT CALENDAR
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
18 – AGM – Blythe Hill Tavern
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – Lloyd Park
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
6 – Kent AC Christmas Party – The Honor Oak
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
26 – London Marathon
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
Before we start, the big announcement is that the Christmas Party will be held on December 6th at the Honor Oak Pub, and tickets are on sale now. See below for details and the link for tickets.
The cross country season opened yesterday with unseasonably warm weather, as it often does, on a flat course with firm footing which led to fast times and hard fought racing. Kent AC performed well, both men’s and women’s teams coming 3rd, and also a good turnout from the juniors, who continue to progress. In total we had 54 seniors and 13 juniors running. Full report below, well done to all the runners and to the team captains for whipping out such strong teams.
We also had runners in action further afield, the furthest being the Chicago Marathon, where Gian Valentini (3:13), Kayode Damali (3:36), Jo Wint (4:31) and Heather Castle (4:46) completed the race. Slightly closer to home, Richard Giles and Caoimhe nic Fhogartaigh ran the Budapest Marathon – Caoimhe came a remarkable 2nd woman in 2:53 with Richard just behind her!
In sunny Madeira they are currently holding the European Masters championships, at which we’ve had plenty of success largely due to our Masters world record holders Joe Appiah and Clare Elms. They’re at it again – Joe has already won a V50 gold in the 100mh and Clare won a silver in the W60 10000m. Joe also reached the semifinals of the M50 100m, and Clare has other events to come. In addition, Emily Murray is entered for the long jump and triple jump later this week.
Elsewhere, Jon Collier and Harry Tivnen ran the Manchester Half in 66:12 and 69:42, Sam Evans ran the Great Eastern Half in Peterborough in 71:29 and Catherine Kandie ran the Ashford 10k in 35:53.
CROSS TRAINING PAYS OFF
Owen Hind writes: The first race of the cross country season was held yesterday at the new venue of Hurst Green. It felt like the whole village had turned out to support the event which led to a carnival atmosphere during the warm-ups and post race decompression.
Kent men came third on the day, helped by a great turnout of 35. The fast, twisting course favoured those who had spent a summer racing on the track rather than those preparing for an autumn marathon. For those out in front it was all over in 25 minutes or so and felt a long way from the upcoming strength based hills of Parliament Hill, Beckenham Place Park and Wimbledon. Making the top 20 yesterday will be a different skill to making the top 20 come January.
Owen was our first runner home, in 6th place behind a high quality field led by UK Champs 5000m silver medallist Jack Kavanagh. Dame Dibaba was our 2nd runner, and Cam Dockerill close behind him – we had 8 men running under 26 minutes for the 4.9 miles. The A team was 3rd overall, and the B team 4th among 2nd teams.
Chris Busaileh commented: ‘a geat result yesterday. We were beaten by two clubs who put real emphasis on today, turning out their absolute best and then some. With 10 to score over four races in five months, every club needs real strength in depth to compete until February. Pretty much all of our scoring 10 train at Ladywell across multiple groups, with more to sub in next race.’
Owen Hind said ‘coming in the top 10 at the Surrey League for the first time in six years feels like a relief. Training in such a strong group right now is moving everyone up a level in strength and fitness.’
Cam our third athlete home said his experience was ‘Worked well through the field with the other boys in blue; Noah, Rob and Nick before a classic sprint finish with Dame.’
Kent’s women also had a good day’s racing, with both A and B teams coming 3rd in their divisions. Amy Clements was 9th and Amelia Pettitt 14th on the 6k course.
Ellie Freeden, Aisling Ahern and Claire Oxlade completed our 1st team, and Nesrin Sabanci, Lin Skinner, Sarah Crichton, Charlotte Perfect and Teresa Murphy our 2nd.
The juniors had a great turnout too – Hugh, one of our juniors coaches, writes:
A fantastic start to the X-Country season for Kent AC juniors with a strong side out including plenty of debutants. Well done to Bonnie and Georgia in the u13 Girls, Mark and Sam in the u13 Boys. 4 brilliant runs to build on for the rest of the season.
Daria ran hard for the u15 girls as did Ed and Joel (another debut) with a special shout out to Luke who placed 7th for the u15 boys.
There was tough luck for Tallulah who was caught up in a tumble early doors, but Alice motored through the crowds for the u17 girls.
We had a great team performance for u17 boys with George, Bert (debut), Lucas and Harry placing well for a team 8th place.
Big credit to them all for running so well, great team spirit and kudos to many of them for cheering the men round with boisterous enthusiasm too!
CHRISTMAS PARTY!
🎄*Kent AC’s Christmas Party*🎄
Yes, it’s that time of year already! A highlight on the club calendar✨
Tickets are £15 including an arrival drink and buffet. Plus-ones very welcome!🥂
.Notice is hereby given of the Annual General Meeting of Kent Athletic Club which will take place at 20:30 on Tuesday 18 November 2025 at the Blythe Hill Tavern
The Agenda for the meeting will be circulated later.
Please also note that all Committee posts are up for election each year. While we no longer have any unfilled posts, any post can be contested at the AGM if properly nominated. A full list of committee members will be circulated two weeks prior to the AGM along with the agenda.
The meeting will be held in person and via videolink. Refreshments will be provided.
CHILLY WEATHER MERCH
Tis the (XC) season for BIG bobble hats, the essential piece of kit for all that chilly pre-and post-cross country hanging about when the next cup of tea seems very far away.
The hat, and other essential Kent AC merch, is available via the online shop. Message Sarah Young on the WhatsApp group for collection.
EVENT CALENDAR
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
18 – AGM – Blythe Hill Tavern
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – TBC
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
26 – London Marathon
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
This season of mists is proving fruitful for our ever-ready racers, who limbered up this weekend with relays in the Midlands, a swift half in Cardiff and the full monty in Chester. Blustery conditions, particularly up north, meant that all our racers had wind resistance to factor into their results. First, those relays: the ERRA National Autumn Road Relays, to be precise, in Sutton Park, Birmingham. Two women’s teams and the Men’s A runners turned out to represent:
Thanks to coaches Ken and Pete, pictured here with all three teams The women (above) were represented in the A team by Caitlin Bradley, who ran the first lap in 21:11, handing over to Abigail Nolan (20:36), to Aisling Ahern (21:01) and Alexa Parker ran the final leg in 20:54. That total time of 01:23:43 earned them 20th place. The Women’s B team were led round by Victoria Buck (22:15) handing over to Fran Buss (21:50), to Elyse Jenkins (22:07) with Victoria Cartwright finishing strongly in 21:56. The men came 13th in the 6-lap race. First lap was taken on by Cameron Dockerill, (16:35), who handed over to Rob Sesemann (16:41), to Dame Dibaba (17:07), then Nick Ackfield (16:41 then Jonathan Collier ran lap 5 (16:42) with Joe English finishing in 16:58. There was more good news on the Saturday morning, coming from Dulwich parkrun, where the top end of the results was dominated by super swift Kent AC juniors, who earned third, fourth, fifth and sixth positions out of 710 runners. Absolutely stunning results and such good news for the future of this club. Well done to those juniors and their coaches. Today, Sunday 5 October, we also saw some fabulous results over longer distances. Ivona Gongolova ran the Cardiff Half in 1:43. Ben Clarke was also in the Welsh capital, and conquered the distance in 69:11. Rob Elphick, battling the headwind in Chester Marathon, ran a beautiful 2:25:29.
A reminder of the club AGM, taking place at the Blythe Hill Tavern on Tuesday 18th November, after the track session.
Please send any proposed resolutions to the Club Secretary by Wednesday.
The agenda will be distributed two weeks before the meeting.
If you would like to view the newsletter in a separate browser, click the link at the top or go via the website.
SPIKES AT THE READY
The cross-country season kicks off on 11 October for the Surrey League at Hurst Green.
Details will follow for each individual race, but for now please check out the fixtures and start signing up on the spreadsheet. Important note to please make sure that your England Athletics membership is up to date and paid for beforehand.
A reminder also that across the cross country season there are six club championships at stake: male, female, main champs (at South of the Thames on 20th December), Grand Prix and Grand Prix handicap. The Grand Prix and handicap are for the best six performances across the whole 9 races of the XC season. The grand prix rewards the overall best and most loyal performer, whilst the handicap can only be described as a dark art – a handicap using best six performances of the same 9 races.
Last year’s winners were: John Gilbert and Amy Clements for champs, Matt Speed and Aisling Ahern for the Grand Prix, and Calum Fraser and Jo Mott for the handicap. Good luck to all this year!
If you have any questions, please let your XC Captains (Owen, James, Gen, Parris, Jason, Nicky, Jules) know and they’ll gladly help. Spikes at the ready.
AGM NOTICE
Notice is hereby given of the Annual General Meeting of Kent Athletic Club which will take place at 20:30 on Tuesday 18 November 2025 at the Blythe Hill Tavern.
The meeting will be held in person and via videolink. Refreshments will be provided.
The Agenda for the meeting will be circulated later.
Please also note that all Committee posts are up for election each year. While we no longer have any unfilled posts, any post can be contested at the AGM if properly nominated. A full list of committee members will be circulated two weeks prior to the AGM along with the agenda.
CHILLY WEATHER MERCH
Tis the (XC) season for BIG bobble hats, the essential piece of kit for all that chilly pre-and post-cross country hanging about when the next cup of tea seems very far away.
The hat, and other essential Kent AC merch, is available via the online shop. Message Sarah Young on the WhatsApp group for collection.
EVENT CALENDAR
October 11 – Surrey League XC – Hurst Green
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
18 – AGM – Blythe Hill Tavern
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – TBC
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
26 – London Marathon
IN IT TO WIN IT
In Kent AC lottery news, the bonus ball, drawn last night, netted Richard Jones a tasty £250. If you’re keen to be in with a chance, there are still some numbers available: email
PARTY SEASON INCOMING
Please save the date
The Kent AC Christmas Party will take place on Saturday 6 December. It’s a fantastic way to kick off the festive season and catch up with your club mates. Details and ticket prices will be available soon.
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
A superb weekend for Kent runners taking part in the Vitality race weekend, with the Westminster Mile taking place yesterday and the London 10,000 this morning.
In the Mile race, Clare Elms and Lin Skinner set the tone, finishing in 5:22 and 5:33 respectively and each winning their age category.
Full results can be found here.
Momentum continued into the 10K today with a string of excellent performances and a lucky few even nabbing a photo with women’s race winner, Eilish McColgan.
Age category highlights:
Nick Torry – 31:54, 1st vm45
Jon Tipper – 33:37, 4th vm45
Vic Cartwright – 39:18, 3rd vw40
Vic Buck – 39:40, 1st vw50
Nesrin Sabanci – 41:21, 10th vw40
Nicky Hayes – 49:36, 9th vw60
Full results can be found here.
Well done to everyone who took part!
Ali Farrall and Sarah Young travelled further afield to compete in the Warsaw marathon, finishing in 3:26:50 and 4:16:16. Enjoy the celebrations in Poland!
Next up, the National Road Relays on Saturday. You’ll find a full race report in the newsletter next weekend.
A reminder of the club AGM, taking place at the Blythe Hill Tavern on Tuesday 18th November, after the track session.
Please send any proposed resolutions to the Club Secretary by Wednesday.
The agenda will be distributed two weeks before the meeting.
If you would like to view the newsletter in a separate browser, click the link at the top or go via the website.
SPIKES AT THE READY
The cross-country season kicks off on 15 October for the Surrey League at Hurst Green.
Details will follow for each individual race, but for now please check out the fixtures and start signing up on the spreadsheet. Important note to please make sure that your England Athletics membership is up to date and paid for beforehand.
A reminder also that across the cross country season there are six club championships at stake: male, female, main champs (at South of the Thames on 20th December), Grand Prix and Grand Prix handicap. The Grand Prix and handicap are for the best six performances across the whole 9 races of the XC season. The grand prix rewards the overall best and most loyal performer, whilst the handicap can only be described as a dark art – a handicap using best six performances of the same 9 races.
Last year’s winners were: John Gilbert and Amy Clements for champs, Matt Speed and Aisling Ahern for the Grand Prix, and Calum Fraser and Jo Mott for the handicap. Good luck to all this year!
If you have any questions, please let your XC Captains (Owen, James, Gen, Parris, Jason, Nicky, Jules) know and they’ll gladly help. Spikes at the ready.
AGM NOTICE
Notice is hereby given of the Annual General Meeting of Kent Athletic Club which will take place at 20:30 on Tuesday 18 November 2025 at the Blythe Hill Tavern.
The meeting will be held in person and via videolink. Refreshments will be provided.
The Agenda for the meeting will be circulated later. Please submit any items for the Agenda to the Club Secretary at by 30 September 2025.
Please also note that all Committee posts are up for election each year. While we no longer have any unfilled posts, any post can be contested at the AGM if properly nominated. A full list of committee members will be circulated two weeks prior to the AGM along with the agenda.
CHILLY WEATHER MERCH
Tis the (XC) season for BIG bobble hats, the essential piece of kit for all that chilly pre-and post-cross country hanging about when the next cup of tea seems very far away.
The hat, and other essential Kent AC merch, is available via the online shop. Message Sarah Young on the WhatsApp group for collection.
EVENT CALENDAR
October 4 – ERRA 6/4 Stage Relays – Sutton Park
11 – Surrey League XC – Hurst Green
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
18 – AGM – Blythe Hill Tavern
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – TBC
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
26 – London Marathon
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
<<First Name>>, Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 21/09/25<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
21 September 2025
Rain and high wind heralds the end of the track season and the start of the road season – and what a start we’ve had, with Kent sending several teams to the Southern 4 & 6 stage road relays in Aldershot, plus 8 runners in the Berlin Marathon. Full report on the relays below.
Over in Berlin Jim Goldie (2:49), Luis Hueca Molina (2:55), Kersha Scibor (3:21), Cedric Hauben (3:26 – pacing), Andy Wright (3:29), James Bates (3:30), Beki Hanns (3:39) and James Hilton (4:13) all completed the first major marathon of the autumn season.
And in Belfast Kent AC’s fastest couple Richard Giles and Caoimhe nic Fhogartaigh completed the city’s half marathon in 78:40 and 81:33. Rob Sesemann ran the Ipswich half in 72:39.
Everybody should have received email notification of the AGM, which will be held in the Blythe Hill Tavern on Tuesday 18th November, after the track session. Please send any proposed resolutions to the Club Secretary by September 30th. The agenda will be distributed two weeks before the meeting.
Also, please note the links at the top of the newsletter – the one top right is to the page on the website where the newsletter is posted, so if you’d prefer to read it in a browser, click that (or this)
RELAY SAYING SOMETHING
Kent sent several teams to Aldershot to compete in the shorter road relay event, with 4 stages for the women and 6 for the men, and 3 for juniors. All teams performed creditably, in particular the vets who picked up some silverware.
Our senior men put out 2 teams, the first one comprising Cam Dockerill, Nick Acfield, Olly Buck, Isaac Parker, Owen Hind and Rob Elphick. They battled well to 14th place, guaranteeing a spot in the national relays in 2 weeks time, Owen having the strongest leg of the day, a PB for him of 18:05 on the 6k course. Our B team came 42nd out of 113 teams, with Dame Dibaba our outstanding runner in 18:55.
We had 5 men’s vets teams – three in the V40 category, one in the V50 and one V60. They all did remarkably well, the V40’s coming 1st, 3rd and 11th, the V50s 2nd and the V60s 5th. The gold winning team of Chris Busaileh, Jake Herrera, Patrick Nation and Adam Paterson couldn’t be joined on the podium by our second team as apparently B teams can’t win medals! Our impressive V50 team of Phil Sanders, Chris Greenwood, Will Pitt and Che Compton were beaten by an impressive Guildfod and Godalming crew.
Alexa Parker, women’s road captain writes: The rain held off (mostly) to make it a lovely day out at Aldershot doing what we love most. Despite last minute injury (as ever it seems with the relays) we managed to field three complete women’s teams on the day – one seniors and two vets.
A strong performance was put in by all our women to garner a very respectable set of results – 21st in the senior women’s race and 4th and 12th in the V40s race (despite four of our competitors running down an age category or two!). Notable performances were by the brilliant Amy Clements coming home in 9th on an absolutely stacked first leg and clocking a time in the top 20 fastest legs of the day, and Clare Elms running the 8th fastest leg of all the legs run across both masters’ categories.
Thanks so much to all who came and gave up their weekend time to both run and support. Now on to the nationals!
We also had a few juniors running – in the U17 boys category the team of 14 and 15 year olds in George Searle, Lucas Stickland and Luke Roderick competed well, and will have a couple of seasons of growth in this age category. For the girls, Georgia Fox and Bonnie Gale-Sanders ran in an incomplete team in the U13s, as did Alice Hales and Tallulah Jones in the U17s.
Well done to all the Kent runners who competed yesterday!
DID YOU CLEAN YOUR SPIKES?
The cross-country season kicks off on 15 October for the Surrey League at Hurst Green.
Details will follow for each individual race, but for now please check out the fixtures and start signing up on the spreadsheet. Important note to please make sure that your England Athletics membership is up to date and paid for beforehand.
A reminder also that across the cross country season there are six club championships at stake: male, female, main champs (at South of the Thames on 20th December), Grand Prix and Grand Prix handicap. The Grand Prix and handicap are for the best six performances across the whole 9 races of the XC season. The grand prix rewards the overall best and most loyal performer, whilst the handicap can only be described as a dark art – a handicap using best six performances of the same 9 races.
Last year’s winners were: John Gilbert and Amy Clements for champs, Matt Speed and Aisling Ahern for the Grand Prix, and Calum Fraser and Jo Mott for the handicap. Good luck to all this year!
If you have any questions, please let your XC Captains (Owen, James, Gen, Parris, Jason, Nicky, Jules) know and they’ll gladly help. Spikes at the ready.
AGM NOTICE
Notice is hereby given of the Annual General Meeting of Kent Athletic Club which will take place at 2030 on Tuesday 18 November 2025 at the Blythe Hill Tavern.
The meeting will be held in person and via videolink. Refreshments will be provided.
The Agenda for the meeting will be circulated later. Please submit any items for the Agenda to the Club Secretary at by 30 September 2025
Please also note that all Committee posts are up for election each year. While we no longer have any unfilled posts, any post can be contested at the AGM if properly nominated. A full list of committee members will be circulated two weeks prior to the AGM along with the agenda.
WHERE COULD YOU GET THAT HAT?
Tis the (XC) season for BIG bobble hats, the essential piece of kit for all that chilly pre-and post-cross country hanging about when the next cup of tea seems very far away.
The hat, and other essential Kent AC merch, is available via the online shop. Message Sarah Young on the WhatsApp group for collection.
EVENT CALENDAR
October 4 – ERRA 6/4 Stage Relays – Sutton Park
11 – Surrey League XC – Hurst Green
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
18 – AGM – Blythe Hill Tavern
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – TBC
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
26 – London Marathon
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
<<First Name>>, Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 14/09/25<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
14 September 2025
We bade a fond farewell to summer racing on Thursday 11 September when the 5000m championships, as well as 200m, and junior 800m races took place at the Alex Yee arena. Laurie Oliver’s entrancing photos capture the atmosphere: from twilight, when the junior races took place, through to the night-time 5km runs. A selection of images below, and massive congratulations to Alexa and Owen, our 5000m champions:
Other images from that memorable evening:
YOU CAN BET ON OUR VETS
Wednesday 10 September was another red letter day for the phenomenal Clare Elms. After running 38:46:9 at the VAC 10,000m Championships at Battersea she is the proud holder of the British Record. Extraordinary achievement.
Over the weekend (Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 September a number of Kent AC’s senior athletes travelled ) to Derby to compete in the BMAFTrack and Field Championships.
Joe Appiah, one of our strongest athletes, won M50 100m hurdles in 14:07.
Lin Skinner ran 5:08:16, a PB for the silver medal in the 1500m: In her post-race interview, she said
“It was a very tough race: I’d planned to tuck in owning to the wind, not go for a PB and have a fast finall lap. The other athletes ran the whole thing at my PB pace, and I was fourth at the final bend so through to myself ‘ I’ve travelled all this way and I’m not going home without a medal…overtook and sprinted for the line!”
Also up there in Derby was Emily Murray, competing in the triple jump. After a great SAL season she was determined to make the podium, and she did: Emily, a V45 athlete, jumped 9.33. Having injured her hamstring on Wednesday she only managed one jump in the first of 6 rounds then had to sit out the rest of the rounds. She was beaten to the gold in the final round by 14cm. This was frustrating as at the SAL a couple of weeks ago she had jumped a PB (and a club record) of 9.67m, and came 3rd overall, despite being the only Masters athlete in the competition, and starting the event a year ago.
For now, it’s time for Emily to rehab that hamstring before the European Masters in Madeira next month.
Victoria Buck (VW50) ran the 800m and was just edged out of th bronze medal contention with her fourth place in 2:42:76.
Another of strongest AC veteran, Philip Sanders, was first V50 in the Basildon Half Marathon in 77 minutes. Mark George (V55), who trains with Adrian and Ted’s groups, ran 1:32:27 in the same race.
Late marathon news:
In the Tallin marathon, Alex Morales ran 3:11:53.
In the Vilnius Marathon, Che Compton was first GB runner in a time of 2:50:17.
Meanwhile, when you’re a Kent AC runner and on holiday in Italy it pays to be race ready. Dee O’Brian proved this by popping on her trainers and winning the Arezzo Confartigianato Run, a “spectacular night race of two laps through the streets of the town and a thigh-busting hill to the finish.”
In a nod to her biceps femoris, she was awarded a very large ham, as well as a chunk of parmesan and a tin of cannelloni beans (covering all dietary bases, there).
Congratulations to all.
DID YOU CLEAN YOUR SPIKES?
The cross-country season kicks off on 15 October for the Surrey League at Hurst Green.
Details will follow for each individual race, but for now please check out the fixtures and start signing up on the spreadsheet. Important note to please make sure that your England Athletics membership is up to date and paid for beforehand.
A reminder also that across the cross country season there are six club championships at stake: male, female, main champs (at South of the Thames on 20th December), Grand Prix and Grand Prix handicap. The Grand Prix and handicap are for the best six performances across the whole 9 races of the XC season. The grand prix rewards the overall best and most loyal performer, whilst the handicap can only be described as a dark art- a handicap using best six performances of the same 9 races.
Last year’s winners were: John Gilbert and Amy Clements for champs, Matt Speed and Aisling Ahern for the Grand Prix, and Calum Fraser and Jo Mott for the handicap. Good luck to all this year!
If you have any questions, please let your XC Captains (Owen, James, Gen, Parris, Jason, Nicky, Jules) know and they’ll gladly help. Spikes at the ready.
YOUTHFUL TALENT
Huge congratulations to Auberon Dragten (U17) on being selected for the 2025-27 England Athletics Youth Talent Programme (YTP).
The YTP is a highly selective 2-year programme, open to the very best 16-18 year-old athletes and para-athletes in England. It provides specialist support — from nutrition and psychology to physiotherapy — and helps athletes develop both on the track and in education. Those completing the linked DiSE qualification also gain 64 UCAS points. Auberon is the first from our Juniors section to be chosen, thanks to his superb 400 m PB of 48.56. A reminder of the potential amongst our young athletes. With commitment, and the right support from the whole Kent AC “village” he won’t be the last — whether through the YTP or, for our U20/U23 athletes, the Talent Development Programme, which is the next step on the England Athletics pathway. The talent is there.
COMMITTEE POSTS – WHATCHA WAITING FOR?
The club’s AGM is scheduled for Thursday 18th November at the Blythe Hill Tavern – all members are welcome and encouraged to attend. More information will be sent closer to the date.
At the AGM all committe posts are open to election. If you’re interested in a role then please contact the President or Secretary to find out more information. Email addresses can be found here here or email for further information.
In particular, we have vacancies for the Club Secretary and Coaching Secretary. If you have the interest and time available for either of these roles, please do conact us for a job description and to discuss it with the current incumbents.
WHERE COULD YOU GET THAT HAT?
Tis the (XC) season for BIG bobble hats, the essential piece of kit for all that chilly pre-and post-cross country hanging about when the next cup of tea seems very far away. The hat, and other essential Kent AC mercy, is available via the online shop. Message Sarah Young on the WhatsApp group for collection.
IN IT TO WIN IT…
…this month was Bernie Hutchinson with a bonus ball of 24 in the Kent AC national lottery draw was 24. There are still numbers available. If you’re interested in joining please email
EVENT CALENDAR
September
20 – SEAA 6/4/3 Stage Road Relays – Aldershot
October
4 – ERRA 6/4 Stage Relays – Sutton Park
11 – Surrey League XC – Hurst Green
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – TBC
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
<<First Name>>, Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 07/09/25<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
7 September 2025
Back to school for some, back to winning form for all! It’s been quite the week for Kent AC, starting on Tuesday night where 2024 club champions and best performers were awarded their rightful metalware. Thursday night saw the grand finale of this year’s Assembly League at Beckenham Place Park… more below, but the TL:DR version is that we swept up both the individual and team awards, which is testament to the brilliant turnout from all across the six races this season.
Today then saw a swarm of navy blue traversing both sides of the river and hurtling towards Greenwich in the Big Half. 81 runners took to the streets and braved the September sun during today’s Big Half. Amongst these, Ben Hope was 1st VM45, Vic Cartwright was 4th VW40, and Miki Jablkowska was 4th VW70. Well done to everyone who ran and to all who drank and ate at SALT afterwards- with thanks to Ellie for organising that all-important decanter.
Autumn evenings may be drawing in, but the fun is well and truly just beginning. We have our 5000m championships, 200m, and junior 800m races at Ladywell this Thursday – enter here whilst you still can as entries close later tonight! There will be races for all times so give it a go!
Details of this year’s cross country season are here now too, so please read carefully, put the dates in your diary, clean last year’s mud off your spikes, and get those hill reps in.
AVENGERS ASSEMBLE
Since April, Kent AC have been taking part in the monthly Assembly League series – six races across Beckenham Place, Victoria Park, Crystal Palace, Sutcliffe, and then back to Victoria Park, and culminating back at Beckenham Place. Across this season, we have seen a brilliant turnout at all races with our club consistently having several dozen runners out.
Firstly, and most importantly, a huge thank you to Richard Elliot for organising and sorting out our entries and numbers this year- no mean feat but carried out admirably and with much patience!
Thursday saw the final one for this year and after the heavens had opened throughout the day, the early evening settled into perfect temperatures and beautifully blue sky. Winning conditions indeed. The race against the daylight was on as runners took on the two lap course through the woods, getting that taste back for the hills and underfoot mud of the upcoming cross country season.
Kent AC came in HOT – with Matt Speed coming second overall, just ahead of Olly Buck and Jim Allchin. Half of the top 20 men were Kent AC. On the women’s side, Ellie Freeden led the way, coming first, with Caitlin Bradley just behind. Seven of the top eight women were Kent!
This set us up for what can only be described as a clean sweep for the overall season awards…
Kent AC men’s and women’s won the league – and even better, our B teams both won too, showing that breadth, depth, consistency and commitment to show up really did count for a lot! Glad to keep those trophies in our hands for another year!
On the individual and age group front, a huge congratulations goes to Ellie Freeden and Jim Allchin for winning their respective titles. The successes don’t stop there – Lin Skinner, Vic Cartwright, Rob Laing and Samuel Taylor won their age categories too. There were a LOT of medals handed out on Thursday!
See you all next April to do it all again!
THROWBACK SUNDAY: 2024 CHAMPS
On Tuesday night, our last summer social of the year combined with an awards evening to celebrate the successes of the past year.
Massive congratulations to:
Sofia for winning the most points across her countless performances at the SAL matches. Fun fact: Sofia is now the proud guardian of the Arthur Twinn trophy, which has not been awarded since 2016 and has been repurposed to now be a mixed trophy… so well done especially to Sofia for seeing out close competition from Alex Harris.
Joe Appiah for the club’s best male performer – with many world rankings and records to his name, especially at the 60m and 100m hurdles.
Clare Elms for the club’s best female performer after also claiming many world rankings and records. In fact, history fans – this cup goes back to 1952, with previous winners including senior internationals such as Averil Usher/Bowring and Bev Panton.
Ellie Freeden for the women’s 5000m club champs, where she topped a podium consisting of Aisling Ahern and Clare Elms too.
LAST CHANCE: LATE SUMMER MEET
Our fourth open meet of the summer will be on Thursday 11th September.
The events taking place are:
200m (11+)
800m (Juniors only, U11 to U17)
5000m (U17+)
There will be prizes in the form of SOAR vouchers for the first 3 finishers in the 5000m, for men and women. All races will be seeded, there will be photo finish and results will be on Power of 10.
If you’re available on the day, we will need volunteers to help out – please contact Rich Giles.
COMMITTEE POSTS – WHATCHA WAITING FOR?
The club’s AGM is scheduled for Thursday 18th November at the Blythe Hill Tavern – all members are welcome and encouraged to attend. More information will be sent closer to the date.
At the AGM all committe posts are open to election. If you’re interested in a role then please contact the President or Secretary to find out more information. Email addresses can be found here here or email for further information.
In particular, we have vacancies for the Club Secretary and Coaching Secretary. If you have the interest and time available for either of these roles, please do conact us for a job description and to discuss it with the current incumbents.
THE LIFE OF A CROSS COUNTRY RUNNER
October is set to be the biggest month of the year. Competing highly against Taylor Swift’s new album release for the event of the year will of course be the start of the cross country season on 15th October for the Surrey League at Hurst Green.
Details will follow for each individual race, but for now please check out the fixtures and start signing up on the spreadsheet. Important note to please make sure that your England Athletics membership is up to date and paid for beforehand.
A reminder also that across the cross country season there are six club championships at stake: male, female, main champs (at South of the Thames on 20th December), Grand Prix and Grand Prix handicap. The Grand Prix and handicap are for the best six performances across the whole 9 races of the XC season. The grand prix rewards the overall best and most loyal performer, whilst the handicap can only be described as a dark art- a handicap using best six performances of the same 9 races.
Last year’s winners were: John Gilbert and Amy Clements for champs, Matt Speed and Aisling Ahern for the Grand Prix, and Calum Fraser and Jo Mott for the handicap. Good luck to all this year!
If you have any questions, please let your XC Captains (Owen, James, Gen, Parris, Jason, Nicky, Jules) know and they’ll gladly help. Spikes at the ready.
EVENT CALENDAR
September
11 – Late Summer Meet – Ladywell Arena
20 – SEAA 6/4/3 Stage Road Relays – Aldershot
October
4 – ERRA 6/4 Stage Relays – Sutton Park
11 – Surrey League XC – Hurst Green
November
15 – Surrey League XC – Beckenham Place Park
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile XC – TBC
22 – Kent County Vets XC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters XC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile XC (including Club XC Champs) – Wimbledon Common
January
10 – Kent County XC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League XC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern XC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League XC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National XC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
11 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
<<First Name>>, Please see this week’s update for Kent AC members – 31/08/25<!–
KENT AC NEWS BULLETIN
31 August 2025
The end of summer is approaching, which signals the end of the track season – yesterday we had the final SAL of the season, in a fixture helpfully rearranged from distant Basildon to local Eltham – Sutcliffe Park, where we’d already attended a SAL fixture this season, and which is so convenient we hoped for a strong turnout of our best athletes. Unfortunately holdays (and weddings) deprived us of some talent, but we were still there in numbers against strong opposition, and performed well enough to finish the season in the top half of the table, we believe. Full report below.
There is at least one more track fixture remaining – the 5000m championships at Ladywell on Thursday September 11th. We encourage everybody to enter, races are seeded, and we’d like to put on as many as we can. There are also 800m (juniors) and 200m races. Enter here.
We have a couple of results from midweek – several Kent runners did the Tracksmith 5000 at Highgate, the highlights being Matt Speed (15:41) and Neil Phillips (15:49 PB), and Cam Dockerill won the Herts County 5k Road Champs in a course record 15:06.
Next week is the Big Half and it looks like we may have a record turnout from Kent, over 100 runners. Good luck if you’re running, if not then do try to make it down to the course to cheer on the Kent shirts (and get some pics for our socials!), and there will be drinks and chat afterwards in SALT Deptford from 12pm.
We have a curious feature down below – we received, anonymously, a photograph of a victorious Kent AC team from 1907. Len Reilly, our records secretary, has done some research to find out the history and context of the photo.
Don’t forget the Assembly League at Beckenham Place Park this Thursday – Richard will send round the details later this week, but do note the earlier start of 1910, due to the time of year, so please get to the clubhouse sufficiently early to pick up your number then get to the start, which is 10 minutes away. It’s the last race of the season, and our local one, so let’s have a big turnout!
Finally, our last track social of the year will be after the session on Tuesday. Do turn up to meet and chat with other club members.
SAL AT SUTCLIFFE
The final Southern Athletics League match of the season took place in Eltham on Saturday. Over the past few seasons it has been a challenge for Kent to pull together a team for the August match and, whilst this was once again the case, those that turned out dug deep to produce a very creditable team performance. Kent were fourth out of six on the day but were not competing against Cambridge Harriers so this gets rounded up to third out of five when it comes to league points. This should be sufficient to secure our highest ever league position (probably 6th or 7th out of 18). There were many notable performances on the day, a few are highlighted below.
Firstly, English Schools high jumper, Phoebe Folarin pulled off a SAL grand slam with her 4th straight A String win, clearing 1.53m. This was our only A string win on the day. There were also B String wins for Calum Fraser in the 3000m, James Bowler in the pole vault and Lin Skinner in the 1500m.
In terms of other notable individual performances, Jim Allchin showed his recovery from illness is now well and truly on track with an impressive sub-9 minute 3000m to finish 3rd against high quality competition. Joe Appiah leapt 6.15m in the long jump which, incredibly, was only enough to finish 4th. Alice Hales again looked a natural over the steeplechase barriers, running 5:48 to finish 3rd in the 1500m SC. Olly Buck ran an impressive double with 3rd place in the 1500m in 4:13 followed by 3rd place in the 2000m steeplechase in 6:45. It was also great to see how well Theo Gaymes has improved at Loughborough University with him running a smart race to finish 2nd in the 800m in 2:02.
There were also vital contributions from our multi-eventers with Alex Harris competing in 9 events, James Bowler in 6, Stan FW in 5, Calum Fraser in 5, Vic Buck in 5 and Jo Mott in 5.
In addition, a shout out must go to our loyal team of officials: Pete Boxshall, Jacqueline Francis, Len Reilly, Phil Marsden, Kehinde Dauda and Laura Seabright.
COMMITTEE POSTS
The club’s AGM is scheduled for Thursday 18th November at the Blythe Hill Tavern – all members are welcome and encouraged to attend. More information will be sent closer to the date.
At the AGM all committe posts are open to election. If you’re interested in a role then please contact the President or Secretary to find out more information. Email addresses can be found here here or email for further information.
In particular, we have vacancies for the Club Secretary and Coaching Secretary. If you have the interest and time available for either of these roles, please do conact us for a job description and to discuss it with the current incumbents.
LATE SUMMER MEET – 5000m CHAMPS
Our fourth open meet of the summer will be on Thursday 11th September.
The events taking place are:
200m (11+)
800m (Juniors only, U11 to U17)
5000m (U17+)
There will be prizes in the form of SOAR vouchers for the first 3 finishers in the 5000m, for men and women. All races will be seeded, there will be photo finish and results will be on Power of 10.
If you’re available on the day, we will need volunteers to help out – please contact Rich Giles.
ARCHIVE CORNER
The club has recently received a fine and original photo from 1907 showing proud members in club kit as victors in the 1907 South of the Thames cross country championship.
This was the club’s first victory and stayed as such for another 108 years. The 1907 victory was a close one, our 97 points to Cambridge’s 98. We also had the individual winner, J Keywood and third placer, J Satch. It was 97 years until we had another individual winner, Jermaine Mays in 2004. The 1907 event had been held somewhere in Bromley over seven miles, with a winning time of 42 minutes.
The photo doesn’t give names, but other photos we have from 1913 and 1920 do, and so it’s possible to identify A Elliot in civvies (and oven gloves) back left, Keywood front left and Satch front right. Keywood had been an active member for a few years before and continued into the 1920s. Satch had previously placed second in the SoT and won our club championships leading up to the war, but isn’t heard of thereafter. The club kit is of interest: utterly uniform (shorts too); pristine, perhaps ceremonial rather than for use in competition; however white isn’t such a surprise as other images from around then show the same.
The trophy is the one still in use: the Sir Thomas Dewar challenge shield – Dewar of whisky renown. It was donated to the association in 1905 so was virtually box fresh.
The SoT as an association was established in 1888. It was originally south London only and its affiliates were minor clubs, such as ours, made up of aspiring athletes of lower social status, excluded by the socially superior and longer-established outfits such as Thames Hare and Hounds and Blackheath. It ran one championship until 1910 when the so called junior, (by standard) event was introduced. Women’s championships didn’t start until 2001. The association expanded geographically and socially and today ranges as far east as Ashford and west as Bournemouth.
The photo came by post sent to the track, but with no clue as to the sender, so if they are reading this on our website, many thanks indeed.
EVENT CALENDAR
September
2 – Track Social
4 – Assembly League – Beckenham Place Park
7 – Big Half – London
11 – Late Summer Meet
20 – SEAA 6/4/3 Stage Road Relays – Aldershot
October
4 – ERRA 6/4 Stage Relays at Sutton Park
11 – Surrey League CC – Hurst Green
November
15 – Surrey League CC – Beckenham Place Park
22 – South of Thames 5 Mile xc
22 – Kent County Vets CC – TBC
22 – Kent County Vets CC – Central Park, Dartford
29 – SEAA Masters CC – Horseden Hill, Greenford
December
20 – South of Thames Senior Champs 7.5 mile xc (including Club CC Champs) – Wimledon Common
January
10 – Kent County CC – Brands Hatch
10 – Surrey League CC – Mitcham Common
24 – Southern CC – Beckenham Place Park
February
7 – Surrey League CC – Wimbledon Common
21 – National CC – Sedgefield, County Durham
April
29 – National 12 Stage Road Relay – Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham
EASYFUNDRAISING
Please remember to use easyfundraising every time you shop online.
Over 7,000 brands pay easyfundraising a commission when you start your shop through their platform, so you can raise FREE donations for us no matter what you’re buying. These donations really help us out, so please sign up if you haven’t yet. It’s easy and FREE! You can get started at https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/kentac
You can also install a helpful Chrome extension, which prompts you to donate whenever doing any online shopping – really handy
The usual track times are:
Tuesday 17:30 – 20:45
Thursday 18:00 – 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.
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).
KEEP US UPDATED
You can have your say about what goes in the newsletter and keep us apprised of your results or running adventures by emailing the comms team directly here.
CLUB CONTACTS PAGE
The password for the club contacts page hereis kacladywell2022.
