Runner claims ‘fastest foetus’ prize

A PREGNANT woman claimed the prize for the “the fastest foetus” after completing the Goring 10km on Sunday.

Mary-Jane Marffy was one of more than 650 people who took part in the event, which was in aid of the village primary school.

Ms Marffy, 31, from Wallingford, came home in a time of one hour, five minutes and 27 seconds, which was about 10 minutes slower than her time a year ago.

She said: “I’m 28 weeks pregnant, so we were going for the fastest foetus.

“When you’re at this stage of the pregnancy, it’s just about movement. It doesn’t matter how you get there.

“It was such a great achievement to get across the finish line with my lovely friend Anna as pregnancy support.

“I’m part of Run Wallingford and I’ve had lots of support since becoming pregnant.”

The race was won by Matthew Lock, a member of Witney Road Runners, in a time of 33 minutes and 39 seconds, 25 seconds short of the course record.

The runner-up was Matthieu Marshall, of Headington Road Runners, who came home in 34 minutes and seven seconds.

Mr Marshall, 38, from Oxford, said: “I had to it this year as it was part of the county championship and Oxfordshire Grand Prix Road Race.

“I don’t always do the road race championships but I do try to support local races and particularly the ones which support local clubs and schools.

“We have just had the cross-country season, so it seemed like an appropriate race to have after the season as the climbs were long.”

James Bolton, from Woodstock, was just seven seconds behind to claim third place despite having suffered an injury in training. Mr Bolton, 51, took the men’s super veterans trophy for 50- to 59-year-olds.

He said: “It was quite nice to get something which shows that I can still keep up with the
youngsters.

“The race winner was well ahead of me, so I was quite glad to be that close as I have been struggling over the last few weeks.”

Mr Bolton, who runs for Woodstock Harriers, first competed at the race 19 years ago.

He said: “I have gone four minutes quicker but I am getting on a little bit now so it’s still a really good time and I am pleased.

“I’d forgotten how hard the course was. It’s so tricky with the really big hills which were also muddy, making it that little bit more challenging, but it’s still a great run to do.

“When I first did this race in 2005, I had only done about two or three races but later that year I joined the team and have run with them ever since.

“I only started running to keep active for my motorsport racing but found I preferred the nice muddy fields and the freedom of it, so I switched hobbies and became completely absorbed.”

The first woman was Leonie Glasson, 25, from Oxford, in a time of 41 minutes, 57 seconds and six minutes.

She has been a member of Headington Roadrunners for more than two years.

This was Miss Glasson’s first race after taking six weeks off to recover from a torn calf muscle.

“I went into it not really expecting much,” she said. “I had never done the race before but had heard it was a beautiful course and knew I would really enjoy it.

“It was so varied with lots of hills, which runners always ‘love’, but it meant that you had to think about saving energy and flying at certain points but with an injury I had to be careful. It was really lovely. A lot of other members were running as a group and we were all supporting each other so there was a nice warm feeling.

“There was so much support out there on the course and the marshals were incredible too.”

The second-placed woman was Lucy Ambrose, also of Headington Roadrunners, with a time of 42 minutes and 33 seconds and third was Susan Francis of Reading Athletics Club in 42 minutes and 21 seconds.

Ms Francis, 54, from Goring, won the women’s super-veterans category award for 50- to 59-year-olds.

She has taken part in the race a number of times as she lives just 400m from the start line.

Ms Francis said: “I was hoping for a one, two or three finish but in the end, I settled for third, which I am delighted with.

“Two years ago, I had a really good run and broke my time and was on incredible form but last year I was running with an injury, so I had to be super cautious.

This will be her last longer race until she returns to run the Compton Challenge in May.

Niklas Bergvall, 50, from Goring, ran the race in 49 minutes and seven seconds, placing him 164th.

He said: “It’s a superb and well-organised event with a lovely atmosphere and for a great cause.

“This is the third race I’ve run as my two children attend the school so we love to do as much we can to support it.

“A lot of the parents came to put up the tents beforehand so I was up at 7am and my wife was in the tea tent.”

Chris Warren, 47, a garden designer from Goring, came home in 53 minutes and 16 seconds, placing him 275th.

It is the only race he takes part in each year and he has done it four times.

He said: “It was good but it was hard. You have about 7km of really steep hills, which is an absolute killer.

“You come up the big hill, then there’s a bit of a dip and then there’s the last hill that you want to come over where it gets a bit windy — that’s the worst bit.”

He also has two children at the school and arrived at the start at 7am to help with the set-up. He said: “This is a great big fundraising event for the school, which is wonderful and I hope we raise a lot of money.”

The runners were helped to warm up by Chris Hipsey, 46, owner of Plan B Fitness.

He said: “It was a great race, which was really well organised with such a strong community spirit and the sun came out as well.

“We have some clients who are experienced runners and some who have done it for the first time this year.

“They all said they loved it and that it was a great course.”

Race starter Matt Rogan, 48, author of All to Play For: How Sport Can Reboot Our Future, stood at the start line.

He said: “It was great to see hundreds of people smiling, chatting and running past you. It put a smile on my face for the rest of the day.”

Mr Rogan, from Chosley, gave copies of his book to 20 people he felt deserved a reward.

He said: “I gave them to people who I thought were particularly deserving and would get the message of the book.

“The book’s focus is on why sport is really important in this country in terms of unifying for good so that it can bring us together socially.

“This event was the perfect demonstration of all those things and it was a really an incredible fundraiser for a well-deserving school.

“When events like this happen, especially one which is on my doorstep, giving copies out and speaking to people make it all worthwhile.”

The event raised more than £15,000 for the school, which will go towards computers for its learning hub.

A school spokesman said: “All of us associated with the school are incredibly grateful to everyone who contributed, be they runners, marshals, sponsors or the volunteer committee.

“It is a wonderful community event and a vital fundraiser for our school. Thank you to everyone who played a part in making the event such a success.

“Like many schools, Goring primary has been reliant on donations to purchase basic capital items such as reading books, maths schemes and sports equipment.”

There were trophies for each of the following categories for male and females:

Men’s Open (age 15 to 39): Matthew Lock (33m 39s)

Men’s Veterans (age 40 to 49): Craig West, of Maidenhead AC (38m 27s)

Men’s Super-Veterans (age 50 to 59): James Bolton (34m 44s)

Men’s Masters (60+) Andy Colling, of Team Kennet, (42m 8s)

Women’s Open (age 15 to 39): Leonie Glasson (41m, 57s).

Women’s Veterans (age 40 to 49): Lauren Thorpe (46m 15s)

Women’s Super-Veterans (age 50 to 59): Susan Francis (43m 21s)

Women’s Masters (60+) Jane Davies (50m 41s).