Athletics News

South of Thames titles for Dominic Nolan and Georgie Bruinvels

South of Thames titles for Dominic Nolan and Georgie Bruinvels

Pair miss Liverpool Cross Challenge to score conclusive wins as Kent AC dominate the team event in ancient championships

Here is our latest round-up from the domestic cross-country season.

South of Thames Five Mile Championships, Lloyd Park, Croydon, November 26

Kent AC won their fifth men’s title in the last eight times it has been contested and they also won the women’s title. They also won the Brent Trophy for men’s eight to score.

While the South of Thames Association first held a race in 1888 this race which started as a junior’ standard event was first run in 1910 but in its current format debuted in 1933.

Individually, the 2021 England 10,000m champion Dominic Nolan, a sub-14 5000m performer, proved the obvious class of the field  as he chose his local race over participating in Liverpool where he was 19th last year and by the finish he had built up a lead of just under 30 seconds.

Dominic Nolan

Ed Chuck has had a busy last two weeks finishing as third M35 in the Masters International in Dublin, winning the Sodbury Slog and finishing second in the London Championships and here he proved too strong for last year’s British Mountain Running Champion Max Nicholls over the second lap.

Nicholls was a non-scorer for Kent but participated in a Tonbridge vest. Tonbridge did not have a team here as they were contesting the Kent League on the same day just over 10 miles away in Footscray which like the Liverpool fixture did affect quality and numbers in Croydon.

Josh Trigwell of Belgrave was fourth while Cam Dockerill led Kent to overwhelming victory in both four to score and the eight to score Brent Trophy.

Barring clauses kept out many leading runners until fairly recently but now it is open to all and since 2001 women have also participated and compete with the men over the same distance and this year provided 36% of the field.

Georgie Bruinvels, the 2017 winner and 2021 runner-up, was the women’s winner from Guildford’s Susie Monk who matched her initially but ultimately ended up half a minute back.

Georgie Bruinvels

Catherine Kandie led the Kent women’s team to take the bronze and with help from Lucy Elms in fourth and her mother Clare, who won this race back in 2009 in seventh, Kent won their fourth title since 2015.

1 Dominic Nolan Croy 25:29
2 Edward Chuck Dul R 25:57
3(ns) Max Nicholls Kent 26:04
4 Josh Trigwell Belg 26:23
5 Cam Dockerill Kent 26:51
6 Johnny van Deventer G&G 27:19
7 Daniel Pettit Kent 27:25
8 Rob Armstrong Dul R 27:32
9…

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