News

Colchester Harriers athletes made the most of almost perfect running conditions to enjoy a successful day at this year’s TCS London Marathon. Altogether 15 green vests completed the 26.2 mile course with Ryan Day the first to finish, breaking the tape in 2:38:12 to finish in the top 500 overall after executing a perfectly paced race.  Rosie Wild was next home for Colchester, the 31 year old running 2:43:40 in only her second marathon to take 6 minutes off her Personal Best (PB) and finish a remarkable 16th out of over 20,000 women competitors.  Nate Filer (2:48:30) and Andrew... read more

Colchester Harriers athletes enjoyed a glorious day in the sun at the Essex Road Relays – held for the second successive year at the town’s Northern Gateway Sports Park – to come away with an impressive haul of team medals. The men’s squad certainly had that podium feeling – with medal winning teams in all four categories – and golds in three of them.   The V40 team of Nate Filer (15:40), Jason Gunn (15:40) and Mark McKeown (15:47) ran remarkably similar times for their 3 mile legs to hold off the challenge of a strong Billericay Striders’ trio.  Consistency... read more

Members may have noticed that last summer the Army took away the defibrillator from the track. This was because across their estate the Army / Sodexo were concerned that some defibs were faulty and may not work if needed. Well the good news is that we have not one new defib, but two! Firstly the Army have replaced the defib that was located on the wall near the men's changing rooms (see photo) with a brand new unit! It is there and ready to use, by any one using the track or hockey pitches etc, so if the worst were to happen it is close to... read more

Lee Valley 4 & 5 March 2023 Having made her mark as a sprint prospect last year, Jadesola Fawehinmi made qualifying through the 60m rounds of the Essex Indoor Champs look very easy. After a hiccup over vests and little time to warm up, a win in the first round of the U15 girls heats (8.08s) gained automatic qualification through to the semi, where she looked confident and calm and once again delivered with another clear win in 8.07s. An hour later an exciting battle took place which kept Harriers own Chris Akehurst busy on the photofinish desk – and Jadesola a nail biting wait to... read more

Colchester Harriers promising youngsters, Lyla Belshaw and Lizzie Wellsted continued their fabulous winter seasons with brilliant displays at the Saucony National Cross-Country Championships in Chester.  On a grassy, if flat, course both girls did their club proud with Belshaw running strongly to take a superb bronze medal in the U15 Girls' race and Wellsted, at her first national event running a controlled, consistent race to finish a highly creditable 10th in the U17 Women’s event.  The girls now go on to represent Essex at the national inter-counties at Loughborough on 11... read more

Colchester Harriers all-conquering women’s team continued their run of recent success by lifting the Essex Cross Country League trophy after finishing second in the final race of the season in Hainault.  Lydia Callan led the team home with a fine third place, her highest individual finish of the season and was backed up by strong runs from Emma Burgess (16th), super-vet Margaret Deasy (17th and 1st V55), Denise Morley (22nd, 2nd V50) and Ellie Cumner (27th) as the green vests pipped Havering AC to the title in a tight finish to the season.  Harriers’ women also lifted the Vets... read more

Colchester Harriers' athletes made the most of excellent conditions at the Great Bentley Half Marathon to produce a string of personal best (PB) performances.  Now firmly established as the fastest local 13.1 miler, the race attracted a top-quality field who were treated to calm, sunny conditions very different to the squally rain faced by competitors last year. Louis Davey was first home for the club, the first of many to record a PB, crossing the line in 1:16:36 to finish 19th overall.  He was followed by Jack McGuire (1:18:44 - PB) and then James Wright, making a promising... read more

Colchester Harriers’ emerging stars enjoyed a memorable day at the South of England Cross-Country Championships at Beckenham Park Place, with both Lyla Belshaw and Lizzie Wellsted crowned as Champions in their respective age groups. Belshaw was first to run in the U15 race, coming home 11 seconds clear over the 4.5 kilometre course after having been in the leading group from that start.  Belshaw was followed home by Isla Widdowson, who finished in an excellent 27th position with Lily Taylor (49th) and Beatrice Sivyer (106th) also gaining invaluable experience of competing at such a... read more

At a recent track and field sub-committee meeting, subsequently backed up by the main committee, we have decided to revert to using the main track entrance; the one on Circular Road North. There are several reasons for this change. Firstly, it allows all athletes to meet under the cover of the canopies of the clubhouse and changing rooms. This allows athletes to leave their bags in a dry, reasonably secure area. It also allows our training registration process to be carried in a dry area. Secondly, we feel that the footpath down to the side gate is not ideal, especially in the... read more

Colchester Harriers’ athletes lit up a grey, blustery day at the Essex Cross-Country Championships at Basildon’s Gloucester Park, with their female athletes in particular shining. The senior women’s team led the way, retaining their County Champions title to take the Ron Merrie Cup back to Colchester for the second successive year.  In what was an outstanding all-round team effort for the green vests, debutant Roanna Vickers was first home for the club in fourth place, closely followed by Lydia Callan in sixth - both girls earning call ups to represent Essex at the national... read more