Briefly

The recent BMAF set of competitions in Nuneaton delivered exceptional performances, highlighted by three world records and one British record across multiple age categories and events. Full results on Pof10

World Records Achieved

Relay Events – 4 × 800m

• Women 45 (W45) Team: 9:26.38 (GB45 Masters Team)
• Women 60 (W60) Team: 10:38.86 (GB60 Masters Team)

Individual Events

• Sarah Roberts (W75): 22:30.18 in the 5000m
  • Club: Dacorum/Southern Counties Vets
  • Season’s best performance (previous best: 20:58.33 in the W70 age group)

British Records

Pentathlon

• Susan Frisby (W65): 3812 points in the Women 65 pentathlon
  • Club: Leicester/Midland Masters/Harborough
  • Personal best performance
  • Coach: Chris Monk

Performance Analysis

The competition showcased the strength and depth of British Masters athletics across multiple age groups. The relay world records demonstrate excellent team coordination and preparation, while the individual achievements highlight the sustained excellence of veteran athletes.

Sarah Roberts’ performance in the W75 5000m was particularly noteworthy, she rarely fails to excel.

Susan Frisby’s pentathlon British record represents years of dedicated training across five demanding events.

Conclusion

These results position British Masters athletics strongly on the international stage, with performances that will inspire continued participation and excellence in veteran athletics competitions.

We have very kindly been given permission by Steve Smythe to reproduce the report he produced for Athletics Weekly, of an extraordinary weekend

BMAF Outdoor Pentathlon, 5000m Championships and Open Events, August 24

British Masters athletes carried on their recent record assault with five reported world records over the weekend and a number of UK marks and it could have been more.

Sarah Roberts had already set W75 world records at 800m, 1500m, Mile, 3000m and 5000m this summer and in the British Masters 5000m championships at Nuneaton on Sunday she improved her world record from 22:40.15 to 22:30.18.

Why that time looks highly impressive for a 75 year-old it should be pointed out she has run significantly quicker on the road (21:33 in May) and parkrun (21:38) and it’s only her 18th fastest performance over the distance this year if you include road and parkrun!

Roberts set off quickly and followed the W55 champion Kate Ramsey through the first kilometre but on the second half she paid for her fast start and had to have a few walking breaks.

Clearly with better pacing she can run a lot quicker than her current 5000m record.

The age-grading awarded at the meeting was actually a lot more impressed  by Stephen Peters’ efforts. The 72 year-old sprinting legend just missed his European and UK M70 record with a 26.16 in an open 200m and ran 12.90 in the 100m.

There was a British record at Nuneaton in the W65 pentathlon for Susan Frisby who still holds the W55 record.

Here she put together marks of 11.64 in the hurdles, 1.27m in the high jump, 7.88m in the shot, 3.75m in the long jump and 3:51.39 in the 800m for a total score of 3812 points to break Jeanette Ashton’s 3078 from last year.

The other world records at Nuneaton came in the rarely run but increasingly more popular 4x800m relays for British W45 and W60 teams.

The W60s took six seconds off USA’s 10:45.23 set in July aided by their multi world record-holder Sue McDonald.
The UK team were given a strong start by Virginia Mitchell who had set an European W60 indoor 800m record behind McDonald in the World Masters indoors in Florida.
Needing an average of 2:41.3, Mitchell gave them time in hand with a 2:32.3.
Elke Hausler, the British Masters Indoor 800m runner-up to Mitchell, started fast while running in isolation like all her team-mates and found the second lap hard but with a 2:47.7, the team still had some seconds in hand at halfway.
Christine Anthony, a multi European medallist at 800m and 1500m, kept Britain in contact with the record on the third leg with a 2:49.1.
It meant on the final leg, Clare Elms who had already set world records this summer at 1500m and mile, needed a time around 2:35 to ensure another record.
Staying controlled and now focusing on more endurance training for the autumn, she held her form on the second lap and virtually matched her UK outdoor record with a 2:29.8 as the team improved the record to 10:38.86.

The W45 team had an even tougher task and it was a
much closer call as they chased Ireland’s 9:26.49 from last year.
This required an average of 2:21.6 and the team were given a strong start from W45 steeplechase world record-holder Kirstie Booth who led off with a 2:18.
World Masters indoors bronze medallist Maria Shaw matched her best time this year with a 2:24.
Eleanor Carney, who comes from a parkrun background and has never previously competed in a Masters Championships, ran a strong 2:22 and the record was now a definite possibility.
On the last leg World Masters Indoors 800m and 1500m champion started very fast and knew she needed around 2:21 for the record which she did on the button as they timed 9:26.38 to take 0.11 off the record.

The likeliest record breakers of the three UK teams were expected to be the W65 quartet who needed to average just inside 2:57 to beat USA’s 11:47.94 from May.

After a fast start from Monica Williamson (around 2:45) and W70 world mile record-holder Anna Garnier, they had plenty of time at halfway.
However, as third-leg runner Jean Fabes completed her second lap and tried to hand the baton to British record-holder Karen Brooks, an official wrongly insisted she had to complete another lap and ignored the protestation of Fabes and Brooks.

That extra painful lap obviously cost them the world record.

It would have at least been a British record but even though it was not their fault and they had run extra distance, the team was disqualified.
The extremely upset quartet will be given another opportunity in a specially arranged event a day before the BMAF Championships in September.

There was a further world 4x800m record that day though further north in Bury.

There the M35 team were chasing Spain’s 7:51.47 from 2016 and they destroyed the record by 17 seconds.
The team of Harry Wakefield, David Proctor, Matthew Revier and Dave Scott needed an average of just inside 1:57 and they put together an average of 1:53.5 to easily run the fastest masters time in any age group in history with 7:34.86.
Wakefield has this year set UK M35 records at 800m, 1500m and mile.

Also at Bury, British masters team manager and former world champion Dean Richardson made a successful comeback with a British M50 record of 4:28.23 to break Tony O’Brien’s 4:29.26 from 2021.

The top masters performance of the weekend arguably came in the Masters Grand Prix at Sheffield where John Wright set a M65 World 200m record of 24.47/0.8 and also ran  UK M65 100m record of 12.38/0.4.

Another world masters champion Ian Broadhurst set a UK M70 300m hurdles record of 47.72 at Sheffield.

While there were no other records in Sunday’s BMAF event, there was plenty of top class competition.

Lisa Gawthorne won the overall women’s race in a PB 18:16.67 while Nikki Sturzaker won W50 gold in 19:10.87.
M35 Ben Robinson was the fastest man by over a minute in 15:06.38.

Terry Booth won the M55 race in 16:35.86 with World Masters 5000m champion Andy Leach taking M60 gold in 16:56.36.

In the W45, W60 and W65 pentathlon behind Frisby’s record there were wins for W45 Lynne Whyke (2715) and W60 Charmaine Johnson (2550).

W55 Jenny O’Connor got the highest points total in the other women’s pentathlon with 3537 points.

Other age group winners were W40 Jodie Albrow (3247), W50 Paula Williams (3068) and W35 Niabari Rutter (2967).

Kaspars Kazemaks won the M40 event with the top men’s score of 3199 points.

M45 Mark Atkin (2838) and M35 Maxim Hall (2802) topped their age groups.

Mark McCallister won a hotly contested M50 event with 2734 points.

Wilford Floyd Wilks won the M55 pentathlon with 3148 points while Mark Line (2815) was top M60 despite not finishing the 800m.

John Hall was first M65 in the pentathlon with 2752 points while Rashpal Singh was the leading M70 (1681).

W55 Grazia Manzotti led home the mixed 5000m walk followed by M35 Marcin Wojtowicz (27:59.60) and W55 Melanie Peddle (28:01.30).

M75 Peter Boszko (31:25.20) was another impressive age-group winner.

Pick of the open shot putters was M65 Allan Leiper’s 13.59m which defeated M65 world champion Michael Hausler’s 13.11m.