By Rebecca Shafford

Dartford Harriers: 

The Dartford Half Marathon – 

On the 2nd March was the iconic and challenging Dartford Half marathon! 

For the second time Dartford Harriers partnered with RunThrough.co.uk who organised the event amazingly. 

1177 runners crossed the finish line including 6 of the fabulous Dartford Harriers athletes. Congratulations to everyone who ran, especially their Hoops who all finished in fantastic times!

Shaw Lyon – 01:17:25 (11th male) 

Lewis Avery – 01:22:49

Sarah Brushett – 01:24:42 (4th female) 

Maisy Rose – 01:28:29

Robert Treleaven – 01:37:29

Chris Barton – 01:55:25

Well done to all the younger ones who took part in the fun run, especially Dartford Harriers own superstar William Pickett who crossed the line in 1st place with an amazing time of 00:03:03!!

Dartford Harriers would like to say thank you to all the volunteers, including many from their club, who marshelled on the course or helped at the track undertaking various roles. The support from everyone involved along with spectators cheering everyone on is a huge help and gives the runners encouragement to finish. 

This is a tough course to run especially with the hills. Everyone who ran should feel incredibly proud of themselves. 

UK Inter Counties Cross Country Championships – 

On Saturday 8th March the Inter Counties Cross Country Championship was held at Nottingham.

Dartford Harriers had 4 of their athletes selected to represent Kent and they all ran amazingly!

Tyla – U13G – Pos 6 – 00:12:14 

Abbie – U15G – Pos 141 – 00:17:36

Matilda – U15G – Pos 153 – 00:17:48

Abbe – U20W – Pos 52 – 00:25:19

This is a challenging race against some of the best in the UK so it was a fantastic achievement from everyone! 

A special congratulations to Tyla for finishing first in Kent and to Abbe for being part of the Kent team who came first place in the U20 women’s category!!

The Paddock Wood Half Marathon – 

On the 9th March was the Paddock Wood Half Marathon which incorporated the BMAF Half Marathon Championships. 

Andy – Pos 187 – 01:20:33

Lewis – Pos 297 – 01:24:44

Maisy – Pos 359 – 01:27:19

Connor – Pos 466 – 01:30:30

Terry – Pos 528 – 01:30:18

Sophie – Pos 564 – 01:34:08

Gemma – Pos 661 – 01:37:20

Hannah – Pos 662 – 01:37:47

Grace – Pos 737 – 01:39:02

Amy – Pos 1214 – 01:55:37

Charlotte – Pos 1217 – 01:55:34

Stephanie – Pos 1239 – 01:55:53

Claudia – Pos 1258 – 01:56:34

Special congratulations to Maisy for winning first in the category for female under 23s! 

Well done to the 2345 runners who completed the race. Dartford Harriers say thank you to the organisers, volunteers and supporters encouraging the runners around the course. 

England Athletics U15/U17 Indoor Combined Events Championships – 

On the 9th of march Talia finished first place at the England Athletics Indoor Combined Events Championship at Sheffield. 

Talia is now the National Champion with a huge pentathlon PB of 3143 points (new U15G club record). Talia PB’d 3 out of the 5 events which is amazing!

Hurdles 8.91 PB (UK lead) 

High Jump 1.62 PB

Shot Put 8.41 PB

Long Jump 4.96 

800m 2.41

Well done Talia on a huge achievement!!

Kent Indoor Championships- 

The Kent Indoor Championships were held at Lee Valley between 15th and 16th March and what a fantastic 2 days the Dartford Harriers Athletes had! 

New PBs, SBs, championship performances and club records were achieved as well as a huge amount of medals won. 

Their Athletes won 11 gold, 10 silver and 9 bronze totalling 30 medals. 

Gold medal: 

Trey McPherson – SM 200m

Rahman Odugbayi – U17M Long Jump

Rahman Odugbayi – U17M Triple Jump

Andrei Dragulin – U15B Pole Vault

Isabella Amartey – U20W Long Jump

Angel Salako – U17W Long Jump

Angel Salako – U17W Triple Jump

Manroop Jandu – U15G 300m

Talia Junaid-Evans – U15G 60m Hurdles

Talia Junaid-Evans – U15G High Jump

Zoya Gabryelow – U15G Pole Vault

Silver medal: 

Stuart McNally – SM 800m

Andrew Pickett – SM 1500m

Daniel Chigbu – U20M 60m

Ayoola Akeju – U17M High Jump

Ellis Yeboah Afari – U17M Triple Jump

Kathryn Sutton – SW 800m

Teresa Eades – SW Pole Vault

Isabella Amartey – U20W High Jump

Angel Salako – U17W 200m

Shevia Ryan – U15G 800m

Bronze medal: 

Trey McPherson – SM 60m

Chidubem Ugoji – U17M 800m

Rahman Odugbayi – U17M 60m Hurdles

David Odeyemi – U17M Pole Vault

Jayden Akubue – U17M Long Jump

Derayo Alade – U17M Triple Jump

Chikamso Ugoji – U17W Triple Jump

Talia Junaid-Evans – U15G 60m

Manroop Jandu – U15G Long Jump

Dartford Harriers want to say a massive thank you to all the volunteers, officials and organisers! 

Kent fitness league XC – 

The final race in the 2024-2025 KFL cross country was on Sunday 16th March at Blean Woods. 

They had 4 men and 5 women take part totaling 9 DHAC athletes!

This course was very muddy but their athletes loved the challenge! Dartford Harriers want to say a big thank you to the organisers, marshalls and volunteers for their contribution and support. There is  also a special mention and thanks to team captains Paul Dawes and Stephanie Wood who for the past few years have given up so much of their time to help the team grow and encourage the athletes to participate. They, alongside their biggest supporter Donna Dawes, have been there providing moral support, guidance and ensuring their runners always finish each race with tea, cake and a smile! 

Dartford Harriers finished 7th place in the combined team competition with their ladies team finishing 6th and men’s team 8th. 

Dartford Basketball (Sharks) – 

MBA cup final:

On the 29th March Dartford Sharks played Guru Nanak in the Medway Cup Final. A tough battle between the two but Dartford Sharks fall short. 

The final score was Guru Nanak 67-52 Dartford Sharks. 

Not the ending they wanted, but the fight and determination were undeniable. They are proud of the team for giving it their all and they will be back stronger next season! 

Dartford Sharks would like to give a massive thank you to all the incredible fans for their support throughout the season, you all make a difference! 

A special mention to Jim Dickson, MP for Dartford, for attending the final and for his continued support of the Dartford Sharks, both on and off court. His efforts in Parliament to highlight the challenges grassroot  clubs like Dartford Sharks face in accessing facilities – they are truly appreciative of this. This issue affects so many teams nationwide, and they are grateful to have a champion for this cause. 

Central Park Athletics – 

Central Park Athletics enjoyed a successful period, beginning with strong performances at the muddy English Cross Country Nationals at Parliament Hill, the London Half Marathon and the Cancer Research 10k Winter Run.

In March, juniors aimed for Mini London Marathon qualification at Bexley Parkrun, and the Dartford Half Marathon saw great club participation. 

Three juniors represented Kent at the Inter Counties Cross country in Nottingham, with Noah Collins winning gold at the Schools Inter Counties in Southend. 

Some of the Parkrun milestones made by the members of Central park Athletics that need to be celebrated are: Ellie (100), Katy (250), and Mark (400), while Anoushka Johnson was honoured at Dartford Borough Council’s International Women’s Day event. 

Marathon training continued with members racing at Paddock Wood Half Marathon, Chester 10k, Thames Riverside 20-miler, Reading Half Marathon, and pacing internationally at Limassol Half Marathon. 

Central Park Athletics would like to thank all their athletes, volunteers and supporters!