Age-group action at the Manchester International Masters Half Marathon

The annual England v Wales International Half Marathon took place on Sunday 26th May as part of the well-established AJ Bell Great Manchester Run. For hundreds of athletes between the ages of 35 and 80, the 13.1 miles represented the opportunity to wear the white or red vest of their home nation, earning the right to qualify for one of six qualifying races.

Starting in the heart of the city centre, the first few miles covered Oxford Road and Manchester Piccadilly, with the course passing the Etihad Stadium and the home of the Premier League Champions. After 4 miles the runners nodded to the newly crowned FA Cup winners, glancing towards Old Trafford near the 10 mile mark. With fatigue setting in, the athletes would have been picked up as they passed the Imperial War Museum and Salford Quays near them at 11 miles before returning for the final in the city centre.

Hats off to the 80+ category winners Elaine Statham (2h22m58s) and Harry Newton (2h32m55s) who were the living, breathing manifestation of the ethos of lifelong participation in our sport. Likewise, Shirley Gibson (2h13m04s) and Richard Spendlove (1h44m09s) made the over-75s bloom in the spring air. F70 Judy Orme (1h44m14s) took the gold medal, while in the men’s over 70 category David Gibson (87m47s) took one of three popular Welsh wins on the day, the others being delivered by M65 Bob Foreman ( 86m21) and F55 Tracy Jenkins ( 86m11s).

F65 winner Lynda Hembury (1hr 40min 39s) was joined by Fiona Usher (90min 39s) and Tony Marshall (78min 40s) who both took the spoils in the age category below in what M55 Simon Mugglestone (74min 41s) proved they have been laid off 30 years since he represented Team GB. at international level as a junior he was no holdover and continued the good form shown when he represented Team England at the Birmingham 10k a few weeks ago.

The over 50 category was dominated by the excellent Jan Cook (84m38s) while Paul Fauset’s 76m58s was more than enough to turn heads. Tamsin Anderson (83m08s) and Richard Coem (73m26s) flew the flag high and proud for the over 45s, while 40 plus Donna Morris (80m42s) and Barry Stephenson (69m20s) both returned in the proverbial ‘blind’ .

At the business end of the field, M35 Dan Eckersley (68m25s) and F35 Roanna Vickers (79m28s) came away with famous wins, the latter being cheered on by a large Army contingent.

See full results