500 run for Sport Relief

MORE than 500 people turned out to celebrate Sport Relief at Warrington’s Victoria Park.
Milers of all ages were sponsored to do one, three or six miles around either the athletics track or the cross country route in the park.
The day was a massive success with friends, families and work mates joining together in friendly rivalry to go the extra mile for Sport Relief.
A battle of the superheroes took place, with Spiderman, Superman and Batman all taking on the six mile challenge. Darth Vader and Luke Sky Walker strolled the mile with ease.
The sun shone as Wolfie and the Warrington Wolves Foundation Team took part in a mass Zumba warm up before the run.
Clive Jones from the borough council’s sports engagement team said: “It was a fantastic day! Watching the community come together to support such a great cause was brilliant! We feel very proud knowing that the money raised will help people living unimaginably tough lives right here in Cheshire, across the rest of the UK and in some of the world’s poorest countries.”

Cllr Geoff Settle on 31st March 2012 9:00 am 9:00 am

As my old mate Clive says it was a fantastic day. I’ve gradually moved my marshal point around the course over the years but I feel that I had the best viewpoint this time around. I could almost see the entire course from where I was and it was great to see so many young people taking part many of primary school age running so well and with their parents and guardians. I hope some of them use this as an opportunity to get down to Victoria Park in the future and ask about joining the Athletic Club.

As the report says there were a variety of fancy dress costumes with the three lady pirates following everyone around having a good chin wag on the way. But like everyone else they were raising loads of money and weren’t bothered they were simply enjoying the brilliant sunshine.

For all those who said ‘I’m glad to see the back of your face at last’ it wasn’t because they had evil thoughts about me it was because as the sixth marshal on the course, I was only some 500 meters to the end of the lap.

I must say a big thanks to my other old mate of 75 years young Neville Jones – the clubs fixture secretary and coach – he marked out the route around the park and this year celebrates 50 years as a club member.

Nev can be frustrating at time and rarely take instruction but he is a workhorse, has a vast wealth of experience to offer the club in organisation and coaching. He has started many athletes off on the road to a life of competing. He like my ex-coach Bert Quennell has been recognised for their contributions by the club and has been made life members. I know when I organised various events for the club back in the late 1980’s they both gave me great advice and helped make the Chris Vose 10km race a huge success with over 1,00 competitors turning up to run the course.

Chris Vose is still, as far as I am aware, the clubs only silver medal winning Olympian – he captained Great Britain’s cross country team almost 100 years ago. I have a photograph that I copied from a Swedish book in the Lausanne Olympic Museum library showing how tough the course was back in the Antwerp 1920 Olympics. Wouldn’t it be great to reproduce the course in 8 years’ time and rename the Victoria Arena as the Chris Vose Stadium or even as a legacy as part of 2012?

Finally well done to everyone who competed and a big thanks you to all those who supported this well established event you all contributed to an excellent day out, maybe some budding Olympian ran past me last Sunday.

1 Comment

Cllr Geoff Settle on 31st March 2012 9:00 am 9:00 am

As my old mate Clive says it was a fantastic day. I’ve gradually moved my marshal point around the course over the years but I feel that I had the best viewpoint this time around. I could almost see the entire course from where I was and it was great to see so many young people taking part many of primary school age running so well and with their parents and guardians. I hope some of them use this as an opportunity to get down to Victoria Park in the future and ask about joining the Athletic Club.

As the report says there were a variety of fancy dress costumes with the three lady pirates following everyone around having a good chin wag on the way. But like everyone else they were raising loads of money and weren’t bothered they were simply enjoying the brilliant sunshine.

For all those who said ‘I’m glad to see the back of your face at last’ it wasn’t because they had evil thoughts about me it was because as the sixth marshal on the course, I was only some 500 meters to the end of the lap.

I must say a big thanks to my other old mate of 75 years young Neville Jones – the clubs fixture secretary and coach – he marked out the route around the park and this year celebrates 50 years as a club member.

Nev can be frustrating at time and rarely take instruction but he is a workhorse, has a vast wealth of experience to offer the club in organisation and coaching. He has started many athletes off on the road to a life of competing. He like my ex-coach Bert Quennell has been recognised for their contributions by the club and has been made life members. I know when I organised various events for the club back in the late 1980’s they both gave me great advice and helped make the Chris Vose 10km race a huge success with over 1,00 competitors turning up to run the course.

Chris Vose is still, as far as I am aware, the clubs only silver medal winning Olympian – he captained Great Britain’s cross country team almost 100 years ago. I have a photograph that I copied from a Swedish book in the Lausanne Olympic Museum library showing how tough the course was back in the Antwerp 1920 Olympics. Wouldn’t it be great to reproduce the course in 8 years’ time and rename the Victoria Arena as the Chris Vose Stadium or even as a legacy as part of 2012?

Finally well done to everyone who competed and a big thanks you to all those who supported this well established event you all contributed to an excellent day out, maybe some budding Olympian ran past me last Sunday.