Week Ending - 2025/08/31

MEGANS MAGNIFICANT MILE

The ladies' one-mile club record has stood for over nine years, but in-form Badgers ladies captain Megan Griffiths had her eyes firmly on the prize when she arrived in Lincoln for the Wellington Memory Mile last week. She blitzed her way to a terrific time of 6:24 and, in doing so, became the first female in club history to break the seven-minute barrier. The result caps another stellar season for the deputy headmistress as she bounced back admirably from the disappointment of an illness-enforced withdrawal from her debut marathon in Manchester. Not only has she led her team to promotion back in the top flight in the Leicestershire League, but she was even leading the senior female category at one stage mid-season. Chris Tweed ran a speedy personal best of 5:33 to make the top twenty while Maggi Savin-Baden took an age category win with her 8:29. Agonizingly, Tweed missed his target standard time by a single second.

Griffiths was not the only Badger earning a club record during the week, as Chris Horton notched up his 21st and final club record of the season with arguably his best run to date in the speedy Mid-Cheshire 5K race on Friday night. To be running personal bests in your fifties is one thing, but to do so after having raced the distance 240 times previously is almost unheard of. His 16:15 was the fastest by a V50 in the sellout 1000-strong race, which saw many of the top athletes from across the UK gather in hope of a rapid time. The effort gained him the highest recorded wava rating in club history with a whopping 89.88%. 

Nine Badgers took part in the race, and every single one returned home with immense credit. Danny Warren ran the second fastest 5K of his career with a superb 16:39, proving that he is almost back to his imperious best. Mark Cox made the journey back to Stoke Golding with another personal best in the bag, his 17:15 capping a superb season for the former men’s captain who has gone from strength to strength since turning 40. He pipped teammate Adrian Payne by two seconds, but the long-serving poster boy of Badgers still managed a magnificent PB of his own in 17:17. The 41-year-old has been in the best shape of his career in 2025 and richly deserved his fabulous achievement. 

Dave Jackson rolled back the years with a season’s best 18:11, a real tour de force from the former men’s vice-captain and self-styled Jackal of Jean, who is transforming himself into a lean, mean running machine. Dave Purvis chopped 43 seconds off his personal best for the distance with a breezy 21:17 and Chris Young hung on gamely after a blistering first mile to record an impressive 21:32. Susie Stringer ran a PB of 22:17, seventy-nine seconds speedier than her prior best, a terrific result for the hard-working V40 star. And when one-to-watch Mia Cox crossed the line in an amazing 22:30, another huge PB was secured, although this is one unlikely to last for too long as the 13-year-old continues to improve month by month. 

In stark contrast to all the short-distance mayhem, around the other side of the world, Mark Repton was in action, adding the Sydney Marathon to his resume. To date, he is the only Badger to have completed all six world majors and continued his journey, adding the newly added seventh major to his impressive tally. Not only that, his times have been anything but ordinary along the way, his effort in Australia came in at 3:11:09, a terrific effort from the V40 ace.  

As ever, there was plenty of parkrun action on Saturday morning with highlights including a personal best from youngster Lilly Wilson who placed fourth female at Bedworth in 25:59. Sam Starkey finished 2nd at Illaunmanagh in Ireland with a brisk 19:38. Half a day after their Mid-Cheshire races, Chris Horton was back at it, taking first place at Market Bosworth in 18:01, while Adi Payne finished a fine fourth at Holbrooks in 19:41. Mark Cox ran 19:52 at Kingsbury to take 5th on the day, where Megan Griffiths ended second lady in a respectable 23:25. At Markeaton parkrun, Mark Reynolds ran a quality 23:49 to record his fastest parkrun at the venue as well as his best time anywhere since 2019, a great effort.