Sue Le Ruez, Mary McGrath, Ana Goncalves and Karen Ewing

DOZENS of Islanders were among the 36,000 hardy souls who completed the 30th anniversary London Marathon on Sunday, 25 April, 2010.

They enjoyed almost perfect conditions for the 26.2-mile race, sponsored for the first time this year by Virgin, with the streets lined throughout by thousands of spectators cheering them on.

Among the fastest Jersey runners were Eliot Lincoln, who finished in in 2 hr 48 min 13 sec, and Vicky Barratt, in 3.19.51.

Newlyweds Sam and Brenton (Bomber) Lee

Vicky said: ‘Despite the rain while waiting to start, the conditions during the race were ideal. The support was fantastic. For the first time, I wore my name on my vest, and hearing people calling my name was a real push, especially in the latter stages.

‘I managed to beat my time from London last year by over seven minutes, but more importantly I raised more than £500 for Cancer Research, with donations still coming in.’

The Island’s contingent included several members of the Jersey Spartan Athletic Club, including two who decided to celebrate their marriage by running the whole way in their wedding outfit. Sam and Brenton (Bomber) Lee, who were married at Mont Orgueil the week before, completed the course in 3.58.52.

Others who finished, including several raising money for charity, were: Paul McGrath (Hope for John) 3.20.33, Tom Amy 3.43.47, Annie Vaudin 3.36.53, Ana Goncalves 3.52.15, Sue Le Ruez (British Heart Foundation) 4.01.31, Vic Gonsalves 4.17.45, Karen Ewing (Marfan Association) 4.33.27, Mary McGrath (Kidney Research) 4.46.38, Angie Raimbault (RNLI) 5.00.57 and Jeremy Johnson 5.02.54.

David Newman(left) and Steve Miller

David Newman and Steve Miller
A chat over a drink at the Dolphin Pub three years ago has now resulted in David Newman and Steve Miller completing three successive London Marathons, including this one.

The challenge they set themselves has also meant that Jersey Mencap, the Variety Club of Jersey and Cancer Research (Jersey) have benefited by around £7,000 over the three years, including more than £2,000 this year.

‘As in previous years, the crowds were amazing,’ said David, adding that their support and encouragement had helped two ‘mid-50s grumpy old men’ around the course.

He finished in 4.55.56 and Steve in 5.02.55, but unfortunately both felt unwell afterwards and attribute this to the gels which they had taken on board en route.

It has not put them off, however. While they intend to see more of their wives than each other over the next few months, they are already looking forward to next year.

The Headway team

Headway
More than £13,000 was raised for Headway Jersey by their team of runners. The money will be used to implement and to continue rehabilitation programmes for brain injury survivors.

Sisters Michelle Harvey and Karen Baker were among those with a special person in mind as they pounded the streets. They were running in memory of Paula Gautron, a friend and work colleague who died suddenly of a brain haemorrhage last year, aged just 39.

Both Michelle and Karen thoroughly enjoyed the marathon and were pleased with their time. ‘What a fantastic experience,’ said Michelle. ‘The spectators were brilliant from start to the finish. I would definitely do it again. Karen and I crossed the finishing line in 5 hr 33 min, which is not bad after only three months of training!.’

Mark Harris was running his sixth London Marathon for Headway Jersey and finished in 5.59.41. ‘It was an inspirational experience,’ he said. ‘The London crowd and support just get better each time.”

The whole team were congratulated by Headway chief executive Ray Cooper. He said: ‘This is great news for Jersey’s brain injury survivors. I would like to thank all the runners for their terrific efforts, which are so appreciated by the Headway staff and members. Also a huge thank you to Avis, who very kindly sponsored the running vests.’

The finishing times of the other team members were Spencer Wells 3.35.09, John Montgomery 3.41.43, Jerry Mills 3.55.51, Lyndon Farnham 4.25.57, Julian Box 4.56.46, Jane Matthews 6.26.02 and Vince Roberts (time unknown).

Teresa Bosio
Teresa Bosio’s fourth tilt at the race, which she thoroughly enjoyed, earned her a time of 4 hr 53 min. She was inspired this time to raise awareness – and funds – for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer charity. The disease strikes around 39,000 people every year and further details can be obtain on www.justgiving.com or 745749.

The Variety Club of Jersey team

Team Variety
FOURTEEN Islanders made up the Variety Club of Jersey team, who ran the marathon with the aim of raising at least £20,000 to provide a new trim trail at Janvrin School.

Several were taking part in their first marathon and several others improved on previous performances. In common with the thousands of other runners, the team enjoyed the conditions and the atmosphere as thousands cheered them on.

They also appreciated the huge support that they received from fellow islanders who were positioned at various points along the route. And despite the tired legs at the end of the run, some were already talking about doing it all again next year.

The team, who were sponsored by Jersey Post, have been training and fund-raising regularly since last October, led by team chairman Sandra Auckland and with runners Pauline Alderman, Anna Tredant and James Lambert.
Stuart Fell and Angela Davey were also part of the team but had to withdraw from the marathon as a result of injury. The times were: Nicola Appleton 3.38.13, Claire Malzard, running her first marathon, 3.41.05, Adrian Gordon 3.54.29, Pauline Alderman, who ran a personal best, 4.03.25, Richard Mayo 4.04.07, Angela Milton 4.08.59, David Harper 4.17.04, Paul Alker 4.19.04, James Lambert 4.29.26, Suzanne Young 6.22.49, Nick Dorey 5.02.35, Bernie Manning 5.58.07, Anna Tredant and Lisa Freer 5.59.40.

Lee Merrien
Guernsey’s Lee Merrien achieved a superb 2.16.48 at his first attempt at a marathon and was fourth British runner home and 12th overall.