Second Met League race of the 2022 season
12th November 2022

ALEX LEPRETRE Led from the start to win the second league race of the season in, surprisingly warm sunshine, on a dry grassland course Alastair Aitken reports. Lepretre, a solicitor in criminal investigation, considered his best run was his club half marathon record of 63.28 in the Copenhagen half-marathon when he was chosen to represent England on the 18th of September. At Wormwood Scrubs behind Lepretre, there was an intense race between Luca Minale and Robel Bahelbi but Minale went over a goal post hole and, lost his rhythm on the last lap and, Seyfu Jamaal who, the previous Saturday won the North of Thames/Liddiard race, shot past them both to come in second with Bahelbi third but the latter, content to be part of the winning Highgate team who had 12 in 62, to stay ahead in the league. In 8th place was the first Under 20 runner Abdi Hamud and, the oldest in the race was Roger Green, an M75 in 450 out of 458 finishers.

Rebecca Bunting, a speech therapist, coached by Jacob Howe, helped London Heathside, go further ahead in the women’s league. She has had an impressive season with 5th in the European Championship 50k race and a 2:41 Marathon in Manchester. In the race at halfway, there was a group together and Verity Hopkins came out of that to get second place behind Bunting. In 5th place in the race at the Scrubs was the first W40 Sofia Latham. The oldest was Angela Duncan, a W80, who brought the field home in 199th It was interesting to see Lisa Da Silva come in 14th as, she is the mother of the 9-year-old, Luca Da Silva, who won the Under 11’s and his Father is Manuel Da Silva Head of Competition at TVH.

Remarkable James Branch, who won the U13’boys at Claybury won again, in only his second cross-country race. Alya Johnson, who won the U13 girls’ race, leading all the way, is at Ealing Fields High School and Captain of the netball team. Digby Turk. Who was 17 on November the 7th, has run 4.15 for 1500 and is currently the Middlesex Champion at that event. Kiera Shaw is still an U15 girl but was first home in the combined U17/15 Race.

Regards Alastair Aitken