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Jonathan Hobbs - UK National 50km Race Walking Champion for the Second Time

Posted: 12th Sep 2018 by Kate Dickinson

The End in sight!!Mid RaceAshford Athletic Club’s long-distance race walker Jonathan Hobbs concluded his most successful season by becoming UK National 50km Race Walking Champion for the second time.

With a 4th place in the Portuguese championships and 3rd in the French, Hobbs travelled to the Isle of Man for this year’s race.

After a good preparation, including 3-hour treadmill sessions in the Stour Centre Gym to avoid the hot Summer, he was ready to impress.

He took the lead from the gun on a tough 1km circuit of their National Sports Centre on a drizzly Sunday morning.  By 10 kilometres he was already 5 minutes ahead of the next athlete. By halfway he was on course for a new personal best and club record, but cramp, fatigue and lack of opposition meant he slowed a little but achieved his second-best time of 4 hours 43 minutes 35 seconds.

“It was not everything I had hoped for as I was aiming for a faster time. However, the main goal was to win, and I did that convincingly. The 50k is always mentally exhausting but the more I work on it the better I am at staying focused and keeping positive. Usually I have some sort of existential crisis during the race but this time I was happy to just keep pushing myself. That was the most satisfying aspect of last Sunday.” He reflected later.  

Glad to see the finish he realised he was no less than 5 miles ahead of the second-place walker.  The super fit Ashford Leisure Trust Personal Trainer is now having a well-earned rest while planning an even better season next year.


British Race Walking Championships

Posted: 26th May 2018 by Lewis Smith

It seems that Jacqueline Benson gets better every time she races. With six personal best performances in six races this year, Race Walker Jacqueline Benson had the race of her life at the British Race Walking Championships.

On a hot afternoon in Coventry, for the British 10km Race Walking Championships, Jacqueline demonstrated great technique and pace judgement. While many older athletes wilted in the heat, 17 year old, future meteorologist, Jacqueline, kept a cool head and smashed her previous personal best with a time of 63m39s. This performance allowed Jacqueline to win her first ever national medal with the Bronze.

JB