Torry In A Hurry
Fast victories for Nick Torry and Rebecca Bunting in Paddock Wood Half…
The small town of Paddock Wood grew up around the railway in 1842, which provided access for local farmers to London and the coast. The area has a long history in both hop and fruit growing industries and oast houses, which are used to dry the hops with the topmost cylinder turning in the wind to allow the air to circulate, are a reminder of this heritage and still common in the area.
The annual Paddock Wood Half Marathon brings thousands of visitors to this quintessentially Kentish corner of rural England and the single-lap course takes competitors on a scenic tour of local countryside via Pearson's Green, Claygate, Laddingford, Queen Street, and back to the town centre for the finish at British Car Auctions in Eldon Way.
Benign weather conditions – after a week of rainfall – welcomed 2,044 finishers who completed the 34th Paddock Wood Half Marathon on Sunday 3 March 2024. The final runner was cheered across the finish line in 3:54:18.
The 2019 champion Nicholas Torry was in a hurry at the front. The Kent AC athlete went close to the course record 1:04:38 set by Alexander Leprêtre (Highgate Harriers) in 2022 but fell 59 seconds short with his UK M45 record time of 1:05:37. The men's podium was completed by Nick Dawson (Brighton & Hove City AC, 1:06:40 PB) and Joshua Burgess (Lewes AC, 1:07:47 PB).
The top three women were W40 Rebecca Bunting (London Heathside Runners, 1:15:40 PB) – the sixth fastest winning women's time – and Kent AC's Amy Clements (W40, 1:17:16) and Catherine Kandie (1:20:22 PB).
There were special 'Joe Cartwright' trophies awarded in loving memory of Paddock Wood AC's charismatic junior athletes coach who was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident in 2003. This year's winners in the under-23 category were Mouctar Barry (Central Park Athletics, 1:13:58 PB) and Kayleigh Oldfield (Crawley AC, 1:25:34).
The race was again sponsored by Lambert & Foster property agents – who have an office in Commercial Road, Paddock Wood – and their 'selfie stand' proved as popular as ever to capture those all-important post-race shots.
Among the largest teams to enter was the 60-strong Dulwich Runners who held their annual club half marathon championships within the race – see photo above.
Full results and previous news stories are at the runABC race listing here.
Image courtesy Paddock Wood AC/Dulwich Runners on Twitter/X