Winter Handicap, 29th January 2024

It was a horrible, wet night for the handicap, so well done to the 33 runners who splashed their way along the Quayside; and special thanks to the volunteers who marshalled and officiated in such bad weather.

Congratulations to Anneliza Andreadi and Anton Mirafsari who won the Handicap Shield and the Winter Cup respectively. The race was dominated by the women, with the other podium places going to Holly Porter and Sonja Fenske. All 3 ladies deserve their success as it reflects their improved performances. Whilst it was Holly’s first handicap outing, Sonja was 40 seconds faster than 3 months ago, and Anneliza over 2 minutes better than her last outing.

The Winter Cup final proved to be a controversial affair. Anton Mirafsari had requested, and been granted, an improved handicap as this was to be only his 2nd run following an injury layoff. Although he was a lot slower than in October, he still managed to beat Alex Harding by a considerable margin to take the Cup. Alex, the only other competitor, was very generous and said it was more down to his poor run and that Anton deserved the win.

Anton will have the chance to defend his title in April, when he will be joined in the final by Laurie Johnson and Kenny McCormick. These were the only 3 semi-finalists to run, but you’ve gotta be in it to win it!

There were no surprises as to who was fastest on the night. Jack Shawcross was fastest in 23:13, followed by Laurie and Dave Nolan. For the women, the 1-2-3 was Sarah Kerr (25:52), Izzy Neatrour and Kim Metson.

Thanks to Anna Round for organising the post-run social at The Carriage, which was well attended and much enjoyed.

Full results are here.