RYDE HARRIERS DUO ENJOY GREAT RUNS AT 10K EVENT IN THE NATION’S CAPITAL

Ryde Harriers Matt Sharp and Chris Newnham both had great runs in the London 10k, which weaved through the main parts of the city with a huge field of 18,000 runners. From the gun, Matt was soon into his running and matching stride for stride with Seyfu Jamaal as they passed the first kilometre in a fast 2min 53 sec. Through 5km in 14min 45sec the pair were still together and despite Sharp’s attempt to drop Jamaal, the Ethiopian-based youngster was strong enough to increase his pace as the finish approached to record a time of 29 min 41 sec for the victory. Despite hanging on bravely, Matt was pipped on the line for 2nd place by the American Jared Ward who had finished 6th in the Rio Olympics and recorded 2min 49 sec, 2 seconds adrift of Ward. Matt hasn’t run a serious 10k for several years and was delighted with a sub-30-minute clocking. Unfortunately, Chris got stuck in a crowd of runners in such a huge field early on in the race but aggressively got into his running to find clear road. He passed the halfway point in 15min 53 sec, a little down on his planned pace but battled it out with athletes around him to finish in an excellent 12th place from the 18,000 participants in 32min 25 seconds and was disappointed not to get inside of his personal best. This London course has many turns and switch backs that do not lend itself to fast times. Both Matt & Chris are part of a strong Ryde Harriers men’s team and will be competing again very soon.