After Richard Bartram broke the tape with a sub-15min. run for the L’Eree to Vazon 5km, Eloise Scholes claimed her first major women’s road race victory and also logged her second Island Games A standard for the distance.
The 236 finishers all braved the threat of rain and fairly strong winds on race morning, though their south-easterly direction actually provided a boost in the opening and closing stages, otherwise hitting runners mostly from the side. It also remained dry until most runners had finished.
Now running for London’s Victoria Park Harriers, Bartram got involved in a close battle with U20 Jersey triathlete Luke Holmes.
The Guernsey Island Games runner required a strong finish to edge clear and triumph, but that he did as he stopped the clock at 14min. 57sec.
Holmes, who races in British Triathlon’s Super Series, lowered his personal best significantly to 15-00.
One of Bartram’s Victoria Park colleagues, Harry Wells, completed the podium in 15-08.
Behind a young mix of Jersey and Victoria runners, recent Orkney 2025 half-marathon pick James Priest finished eighth overall in 15-52 as the top Guernsey resident.
He was followed closely by U20 Jack Rees and fellow half-marathon pick Sammy Galpin, who finished on the same time just 1sec. behind.
Sammy’s elder brother, Dan Galpin, finished 12th in 16-13.
Other notable runs included Matt Jamieson, 13th overall in 16-17, being the top veteran competitor and former junior cross-country star Louis Le Cheminant clocking 16-21 following a recent return to serious running.
‘Really enjoyed the race,’ the winner said.
‘I was a bit nervous about the conditions, but actually I didn’t think they were too bad.
‘We had a really good group to push the pace, including some really good Jersey athletes.
‘I felt good with 1,200 to go and pushed forward, just managing to hold off Luke.
‘Really happy to run another sub-15 time in these conditions and looking forward to the rest of the week.’
In the women’s race, reigning champion Steph Twell was running her third consecutive Easter Festival but not in the same course record-setting form she showed last year.
She nevertheless led into the final kilometre, upon which the brewing rivalry of Scholes and Nix Petit took centre stage as they motored ahead towards the finish line.
The returning Scholes powered to first in 18-09, an improvement of 8sec. on her recent debut over the distance as she works towards a potential Games debut.
Meanwhile, Petit notched her first Games A standard of the season in taking the runner-up spot, posting 18-13.
Sarah Roe ultimately pinched third spot in 18-25 after a well-measured race of her own. Twell finished fourth another 3sec. down as the top visitor.
Impressively, although too young for Orkney, U15 Grace King put down her own B standard with an 18-35 for fifth female runner overall.
Among a blend of domestic and visiting women beating the 20min. barrier, one particularly notable age-adjusted performance came from Exmouth Harriers’ Catherine Newman, who ran 19-57 as a V60 athlete.
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