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Many Gloucester AC club members raced for their county in the Inter-counties CC Championship on Saturday. The course at Wollaton Hall, Nottingham is renowned for its steep start and finish and both played a part in tactics and in deciding finishing positions.

Anthony Cruise U20 raced 8k taking 26:59 to come in 63rd and thinking he had gone off a little too fast. Anthony's race was followed by the race for the youngest in the Championship with Ruby Liddington 239th in 14:15 and   4th scorer for the county team reflecting an improvement in placing within Gloucestershire.

Callum Yates raced the U15B 4k speeding down the 10% hill for 15:23 and 204th with possibly his best run and finish of the season.

As Callum was finishing the U17W started their 5k race ; Evie Avery, returning from an injury obtained whilst spectating a hockey match, was very happy with her 22:01 and 153rd place and first county finisher. Estelle Lowe represented Avon starting and finishing strongly for 64th in 20:32.

Three club members raced the U17 Men's 6k race. Joe Cruise was first home in 127th 21:05. Ben was only seconds behind (157th 21:22) with Arthur Nield racing well down the 10% slope to gain 189th in 21:44.

Noah Sutton U13B, found the crowded start difficult but was the club's leading runner racing 3k in 11:52 and second Gloucestershire athlete in 85th.  Toby Brooks who, this season, has matured as an athlete and is applying tactics well raced 12:15 for 132nd and making the scoring team. Henry Tipper coming in as the last moment as a reserve rose to the occasion with possibly his best race of the season for 203rd in 12:36 and again improving his placing within the county by beating athletes who had beaten him in the selection race.

Ruth Brook 22:51 showed the return to form promised for some time. Using the hills well and not starting too fast over the first 400m she increased cadence on the downhills pulling away for 9th over the 6k course. The final 400m saw Ruth taking several places with a wonderful example of the fast but controlled downhill racing she had practised in training.

Lily-Sienna Leon-Hodgson (15:24 54th) was 3rd in the team scoring helping the U15G to the highest Gloucestershire team position of the day -12th - but had difficulty in manoeuvring through the crowded uphill start. Remaining clam she steadily progressed through the field.  Molly Holland gained places on the last lap to take 153rd in 17:21.

Meanwhile, Bethan Holloway, Oakley Hogan and Sam Fortnam competed at the England Athletics, Indoor, Combined events championships in Sheffield.

Bethan competed in the pentathlon on Saturday. She finished 14th overall as a 1st year in the age group and was unfortunate not to get a top 10 finish. Her best performance came with an 11.10m shot put.

Oakley competed in the heptathlon over Saturday and Sunday. He finished in 7th place with new club records of 1.71m in the high jump, and 4187 points for the heptathlon. A very consistent weekend with good performances throughout.

Sam competed in the pentathlon on Sunday and also finished 7th overall. His score of 2278 points is a new club record. A very good day for Sam with some excellent performances.

Further afield, Gloucester AC’s ‘Running Doctor’, Ishe Mupfupi, ran a new PB of 1:15:46 at the Lisbon half-marathon.

Eight Gloucester AC runners took part in the Bourton 10K on a beautiful sunny Sunday morning. Anthony Cruise, who was back from university for the weekend, was the first Gloucester AC runner to finish and got a PB of 32:46, finishing 6th overall. Mike Hall came in 86th place with a solid run of 38:46 after several weeks of a hip injury.

Tracy Hinxman and her training partner, Emma Richardson ran together for much of the race with Tracy finishing just two seconds ahead with 39:48, the first LV50 finisher. Emma was the 13 senior lady to finish with a time of 39:50.

Jason Tilley set out with Tracy and Emma, but they pulled away from him in the second half of the race as Jason finished in the 12thMV50 finisher with 40:44. Anna Midgley wasn’t far behind and achieved her best 10k time in last five years and was the fourth LV40 with a time of 41:30. Dave Gresswell’s preparation wasn’t ideal as he didn’t taper for the race but was still 5th MV60 runner with 42:57. Hannah Cornford donned a Gloucester AC vest and came in just over an hour with 1:00:03.

A special mention to Richard De-Camps, who has joined some other old Glos AC running colleagues at Weston Tempo, and came in third place. Good luck with the new team, Rich.

There was a great atmosphere at the final Gloucestershire Cross-Country League fixture which was held in bright and dry sunshine at Pittville Park in Cheltenham.  Young Gloucester AC athletes gained numerous team and individual medals with a particular highlight being the U13 boys race. Noah Sutton and Toby Brooks led for the first kilometre of the 2.9k race with Noah equalling his best league placing of 2nd (9:42) and Toby improving his best place to 3rd 10:02). Noah gained league gold and Toby gained bronze. Tom Cowell (GAC Academy) helped the boy’s team to silver overall and Ruby Liddington ran with improved confidence for 13th girl in 11:55.

Academy athletes William Shaw and Bethany Harris raced the U11 2.2k races with William coming 22nd boy in 10:18 and Bethany 7th girl in 19:31. Bethany gained the bronze league medal. Annabelle Buescher was 8th girl with 10:40.

The U15B are a developing team with Callum Yates being first home in 8th 17:22 closely followed by William Shuttleworh (10th with 17:31) and Monty Carruthers (17:48) for 11th who both showed improved pace judgement. Harry Overthrow was 18th boy in 18:28. William Shaw’s older brother, Charles, navigated the stream perfectly and achieved 26th place with 20:57. Academy runner Manni Sidiqui was 28th boy in 21:09. Gloucester AC were third team in the league.

Lily-Sienna Leon Hodgson (U15G) discussed race tactics with her coach and decided on a faster than usual start as she has been working on improved speed and raced to second place girl on 18:35 despite falling twice in the stream crossing. Molly Holland improved her best league race placing to 7th in 19:21. Bella Smith was 15th girl in 23:09.

The penultimate race featured several age groups. Ben Clarke’s (U17M) second place (23:00) in his first year of running led home the team to a silver league medal. Joe Cruise and Arthur Nield ran most of the 6.5k race together with a final sprint giving them both the same time (23:29) but with Joe (5th) just in front.

Ruth Brook ran strongly and carefully paced to be first U20W and third women overall  in 25:17. Lily Morey was 4th U17W in 42:11. Anna Midgley ran smoothly for 5th W40 in 28:55 and Emma Stalberg not fully recovered from flu 7th W45 in 34:17. The final 10k race saw Chris Nield, who is putting inn extra miles for London Marathon training, achieve 7th M50 in 42:26. 

Elsewhere, Daniel Ivanics-Filip raced the Monaco 10k creating an PB by over 3 minutes. Running 38:09 he was the first U20M with average 3:49m pr km splits. Daniel is racing the Bourton 10k next Sunday; he raced that in 2025 recording 46:22 so in one year has taken a massive 8 minutes off his PB. 

Estelle Lowe (U17W) continued her return to great racing form when she raced in the SW Mini London marathon trials in Exeter, finishing the 2.5k course in third place with 8:23m, averaging 3:22m per km pace. Estelle qualifies for the event on April 25th, a day before the main London Marathon.

Gloucester AC throwers were also in action this weekend as Adam Merrett and Lucas Savage competed at the England Athletics South Regional Winter Long Throws Championships 2026.

Adam only joined the squad in late September after relocating to start his apprenticeship. Competing with the 6 kg hammer, he produced a personal best of 59.77 metres. Although he was hoping to open his season with a 60 m throw, it was still a strong early-season performance. Lucas threw 44.98 m with the 5 kg hammer, just two metre short of his PB, giving him a solid start to the 2026 season. 

William Richards-Baldwin followed-up his recent good indoor form by winning the Discus at the inaugural Welsh National Long-Throws Championships in Aberdare today. Competing in the under-18 age-group, his opening throw of 46.14m was good enough to take the win and give him his third Welsh title, having previously been champion of Wales in Shot and Hammer.

It was a very busy weekend for Gloucester AC athletes across the country with some representing their county in Exeter, some competing in the England Open Indoor Championships in Sheffield, others crossing the border to Cardiff and Chepstow and some staying local at Plock Court in Gloucester.

Top cross country runners had made it through local and county competitions to represent their county in the SW Schools Cross-Country Championship at Exeter.  The first of the Gloucester AC runners was Ruby Liddington who helped the Minor Girl's  team to first place coming 36th in 12:32 over a very, very muddy course. Molly Holland was the third scorer in the Junior Girl's 3220m race with a steady run which saved energy for the final muddy lap enabling her to move through the field as other tired for 23rd place in 16:05 with the team coming third.

Livvi Avery in 6th place (16:44)  led the Gloucestershire team home for 2nd team in the Inter Girl's 3550m event. Lily-Sienna Leon- Hodgson ran one of best races of the season coming in with a fast finish showing marvellous sprint form in 9th with 17:03. Livvi’s sister, Evie, showed a promising return to form from an injury to finish 23rd with 17:56.

The Senior Girl's race over 4110m and saw Ruth Brook produce the top performance for the day for Gloucester AC runners and she confirmed her return to excellent form. Good tactical running saw her move through the field for a strong 4th place in 18:52. Estelle Lowe representing Avon and using similar tactics finished 8th in 19:27. Estelle’s sister, Felicity showed how her racing is improving to  gain 3rd Avon scorer place in 20:57 for 22nd position. 

Junior Boys Noah Sutton and Toby Brooks raced the 3220m of mud, Noah again moved steadily through the field for 23rd place in 14:21 with Toby completing the course in 57th place with 15:19 to help the team to first place. Intermediate Boys Ben Clarke, Joe Cruise and Callum Yates contributed to Gloucestershire's second team placing as Ben stayed out near the front for the whole race and gained 5th spot with 18:00. Joe ran steadily to improve position and finishing with a superbly fast sprint taking three paces and holding off a strong challenge in the final 10m for 12th in 18:35. Callum showed similar tactics to cover the 4750m in 19:52 for 48th place.

The senior boys ran in the final race of the day was, years 12 & 13 at school, running the 6km course which by now had become very churned up without any let-up from the thick mud. Arthur Nield ran a solid race coming in 4th for Gloucestershire and 30th place overall with a time of 24:28.

The Senior men’s team performed admirably at the final race in the Birmingham Cross-Country league, held at Plock Court on Saturday. Richard de-Camps led the way with 2nd place and was backed up with some great performances from Marc Bennett, Luke Hine, Adam Bradburn, Ishe Mupfupi, Andy Noakes, James Walters, Lee Smith and Dave Gresswell. After a tough season for the team, it was great to finish in fourth spot.

Younger athletes also competed in the Gwent league at Chepstow on Saturday. Henry Tipper raced the U13B event coming a close fought 8th place in 10:24. William Shuttleworth (U15B) came third - his highest placing in a cross country race reflecting his improved  fitness and pacing - with 13:30.  Ruby Sleeman (U13G) also fought hard for 47th place with 13:05.

Some of Gloucester AC’s bright stars were in action at the England indoor age-group championships in Sheffield, including William Richards-Baldwin. William came away with the silver medal in the under-20 Shot, throwing 13m15cm. James Arminio won his heat in the 60m and secured a final spot with third in the semi final to race against some of the finest U20 sprinters in England in the final where he ran a time of 6.93s. Combined Events specialist, Oakley Hogan performed fantastically to get to the 60m hurdles event and ran a great time and PB with 8.74s. Racing across Saturday and Sunday, Melody Benn produced personal best performances, including a new PB of 7.84 in the 60 m and an indoor PB in the 200 m (26.04) showing great determination across the weekend.

Gloucester AC also had two athletes competing at the Welsh Senior Championships on Saturday and Sunday. Isabella Fernandez and Lewis Nicholls both closed out successful indoor campaigns. Lewis ran a very solid 200 m, while Isabella had an outstanding weekend, setting personal bests in both the 400 m (59.94) and 200 m (26.90), and reaching the semi-finals in both events.

Indoor Competition Round-Up

Weekends of 10–11 & 17–18 January

A squad of four from Nik Brink’s training group headed to Loughborough for the Indoor Open, combining strong performances with a valuable team-building experience. Travelling together, supporting one another, and getting crucial exposure to indoor racing made it a hugely positive weekend both on and off the track.

All four athletes raced over 60m and delivered standout performances.

Isabella Fernandez produced an excellent PB of 8.37, backing it up immediately with 8.38.

Melody Benn was equally impressive, clocking 7.90 and 8.00—both comfortably inside her previous PB.

Hattie Akerman ran a new PB of 8.59, followed by another solid second race.

Lewis Nicholls, competing while carrying a minor illness, showed great resilience to run very close to his PB.

Special congratulations to Melody Benn, who has qualified for the England Age Group Championships, and Isabella Fernandez, who has secured qualification for the Welsh Senior Championships—both over 60m and taking place on 7–8 February 2026. Fantastic achievements.

The following weekend saw William Richards-Baldwin open his 2026 campaign at the Welsh Indoor U20 Championships. Still just 16 years old, and competing up an age group, William (coached by Lorraine Shaw) delivered a superb series, improving his PB three times to finish with 13.77m. In a high-quality field featuring two British Championship medallists, he claimed an outstanding silver medal.

Also in action was James Arminio in the 60m. After navigating a tough heat in 7.10, he took control of the semi-finals, winning in 6.98. In the final, James executed his race plan perfectly to take gold and the Welsh U20 title as a non-Welsh athlete, stopping the clock at an excellent 6.89.

This performance underlines James’s continued progression. He now turns his focus to the England Championships and British Championships, which take place back-to-back. Having qualified, James has been invited to compete in the 60m at the British Championships—his first appearance at this level and a fantastic opportunity to race against the nation’s best. The event will be broadcast live on BBC on 14–15 Feb

In a high quality field at the Speedway 10K at Beachley on Sunday 18th January, Richard de-Camps confirmed his status as club number one over country and road, finishing 12th in 31:23, a PB and just outside the Club M35 record. He was supported by Luke Hine who finished 129th in 36:20. Luke's strong finish indicates there is more to come. In the ladies competition, Prudence Plum Towey finished 14th female in an excellent time of 38.49 whilst, not far behind her training partner, was Emma Richardson in 16th in another first class time of 39:08.

Also in action on Sunday, from the same training group as Richard, Pru and Emma, was Tracy Hinxman in the Linda Franks 5 mile. Tracy finished overall 44th, first F50, in a time of 30:44. Mike Hall was the first Gloucester runner through in 36th place with a time of 29:51. Also competing was Anna Midgley with a time of 32:16, Dave Gresswell who had recently moved up an age category, with 34:11 and John Umpleby 36:21.

Two sets of athletes represented Gloucester AC at the Gloucestershire AAA Plock Court Relays on Saturday 3rd January in cold but sunny conditions.

The men’s team was led out by Adam Bradburn who ran a very strong first leg finishing the 2 mile course in 10:21. Star performance of the day for the men’s team was Ben Clarke on the second leg, despite being an U17, clocked the fifth fastest time overall on the day with 10:06. Mike Hall and James Walters ran strongly on the third and fourth legs with times of 12.18 and 12.08 to bring the team home in fifth position.

Jen Davies set the ladies team off to a great start, recording the fifth best female time with 12.19. Anna Midgley then produced a very strong second leg, with a time of 12:35 before handing the baton over to Grace Hinga (13:21) and Alice George (14:48) for a top five finish in the ladies / girls teams.

Overall, great performances from both teams.