A beautiful spring morning greeted all the runners to the Sri Chinmoy Mirambeena race today.  Family, friends and fellow running enthusiasts came to test their skills at distances ranging from the 2 miler up to the 16km.  A picturesque and mostly flat  (!) course allowed everyone to relax into the race with some spectacular sprint finishes!

Taking out the 16km was Philip Balnave – and first in a new men’s 50-59 course record time of 1:01:54 – Mirambeena is the only race of the Sri Chinmoy Sydney series Philip had never done and to race it and win was a nice touch to complete the full suit.  Second overall and first in the under 50 category was Matthew Gore in a time of 1:04:02, soon behind him for second was Daniel Murphy in 1:05:36 with third place Kieran O’Connor finishing in 1:06:37.  Second after Phil in the 50-59 category was Masanori Chiba in 1:10:37 and third place going to Paul Webb in 1:12:58; Ian Sutherland took out the men’s 60-69 category in 1:23:36.

In the women’s race Akiko Akashi won outright and first in the under 50s in a time of 1:15:33, second place going to Heidi Griffiths in 1:16:06 and third place going to Amandine Tena in 1:17:14.  In the women’s 50-59 Susan White took first place in 1:26:52, and Maureen O’Neil taking out the women’s 60-69 in a time of 2:22:24.

A fast field in the 8m brought Martin Vu into the finish in 31:06, hot on his heels was Manuel Geier with 31:36 and even hotter on his heels was Michael Abiwahab in 31:46!  In the men’s 50-59 Alistair Sandilands came home in 32:42, Rob Ellis taking out the men’s 60-69 in 38:50 and the Men’s 70+ went to David Iverach in yet another course record time – a sizzling 39:29. 

Zoe Melling won the women’s race in a time of 37:41, second place going to Lena Chen in 40:08 and third place Catherine Bolshesolsky in 41:15, one second in front of our 4th place getter Amie Reischery.  In the women’s 50-59 Hollee James was first in a new course record for her age group of 39:22.

In the small but competitive 2 mile race, first place went to Davor Zailac in 13:58, first in the boys under 13 went to Ryan Reynolds in 16:08 and first in the boys under 17 to Gabriel Infante in 18:04. 

In the female race the girls under 17 first place went to Chloe Truong in 18:56, two seconds ahead of second place getter and sister Mia Truong in a time of 18:58. Samantha Truong took out the women’s over 17, one minute behind her daughters in a time of 19:58.

Congratulations to all who ran today: it was a stunning day that just yearned to have runners out there enjoying the fresh spring air, bright blue sky and calm gentle Sunday morning pace.  We look forward to seeing you again soon!

Sri Chinmoy Races have been held at the beautiful Iron Cove for more than 30 years, with many and varied courses and distances over the decades. The marquee event today was the 3-lap Half-Marathon, raced in cool and overcast conditions with only the slightest of showers towards the end to cool things down a little.

Some might say it’s easy to win a category when there is only one participant – yet Mary Sheehan not only won her category of Female 60-69, she took 5 minutes off the course record for the Half-Marathon distance at this venue which had stood for 6 years! … so even if every woman who has ever run in this category were participating today, Mary still would have won by a huge margin, a true champion.

Anna MacKenzie ran a phenomenal race to win the women’s Half-Marathon in 1:28:20 – taking 8th place outright – from Nicole Wilding in 1:37:55 and Kristen Baltzer with 1:42:33. Karen Ryan won the Female 50-59 with 1:48:41 from Kim Pluess in 1:49:48.

Chris Gordon ran a controlled race from the front to win the Half-Marathon men’s race in 1:18:00, from Andrew Johnston (1:19:41) and Tym Blackwell (1:24:12). The indomitable Phil Balnave placed 3rd outright in taking out the Male 50-59 category in 1:21:47, only missing the formidable course record by a mere 3 seconds. He was followed by Masa Chiba (1:30:09) and Mark Tisdale (1:32:02); while Victor Correa – fresh from running the Sri Chinmoy 24 Hour race in Campbelltown last weekend – won the Male 60-69 in 1:34:03 from Kieron Blackmore’s 1:41:54. Peter Allen took home 1st place in the Male 70 and Over with 2:23:27.

In today’s unusually small (some would say ‘intimate’) turn-out, the 7km race had exactly the same number of finishers as the Half-Marathon – 76. With the pathways around The Bay becoming increasingly busy with Sunday recreationalists, having a smaller field gave everyone a little more elbow room on the course.

The 7km men’s race was won convincingly by a flying Tony Green in 24:48, from 2nd placed Greg Churchill in 27:05 with another gap to 3rd in the form of Kris Fitzpatrick’s 28:23. Aaron Francey took out the Male 50-59 (and 7th outright) with a fine 28:53; the redoubtable Brian Rayburn won the Male 60-69 in 31:42; and Vic Egerton the Male 70 and Over with 43:37.

The women’s 7km race was won in fine style by Sophie Bennie in 29:16, from Natalie Malligan with 30:08 and Jen Dugard in 31:24. Josephine Linehan took out the Female 50-59 with 40:19; and the wonderful Sylvia Nichols the Female 60-69 in 35:33.

The 4km race was a good one for the Sarkies clan, with dad Richard Sarkies winning the race outright and taking the Male 17 and Over major prize with a fleet-of-foot 14:47; mum Kirsten Todd taking 2nd in the Female 17 and Over with 20:56; elder son Wilson winning the Boys Under 17 in 16:15; and Saxon taking 2nd in the Boys Under 13 with 17:18. Mitchell Dean was winner of the Boys Under 13 with an excellent run of 16:42; Isabelle Preller took out the Girls Under 13 with 23:01; and Sally Hannah won the Female 17 and Over in a fast 16:45.

How do people observe or celebrate Easter Monday? What’s this day signify?

We’ve already honoured and celebrated Easter Day – each according to our faith, understanding or tradition – so what are we supposed to be celebrating or honouring on the following day that warrants a National Public Holiday?

That’s a rhetorical question.

As runners, we don’t need a reason to celebrate – we just need the right course and an occasion, any occasion.

Certainly there were plenty to agree that Easter Monday is an ideal occasion for a run – whether competitive or casual – in the soothing surrounds of Centennial Park. Organisers found our registration capacity tested with the volume of on-the-day entries as folk flocked to the park for an 8am start.

With Daylight Savings ending the previous day meaning the sun would already be one hour higher in the sky by the time of the race start, and an unseasonably (and unreasonably) warm and humid morning forecast, the Half-Marathoners were going to be facing some tough running by their third lap as the sun mounted and blazed ever higher and stronger.

Perhaps this explains why the 7km distance was the soup-du-jour, with a field the same size as the Half-Marathon and 4km fields combined. With only one lap to cover and a much earlier finish, the 7km runners were assured of avoiding the most testing time of the day – and of getting in before the pancakes ran out! Organisers apologise unreservedly to the few Half-Marathoners who missed out on pancakes today as our stocks were completely exhausted.

All Half-Marathon finishers are to be admired and congratulated for their determination, application and courage no matter what their finish time. No-one reached the goal with a brighter smile of elation than Siyu Wang, our final finisher in an impressive 3:16:30! Several runners pulled out after one or two laps which is entirely understandable – the more who withdrew only increased our appreciation for how tough it was and our respect for the efforts of those who endured and conquered.

Rod Chisholm ran a superbly controlled Half-Marathon, leading from the get-go to win the race in a fine 1:20:28 from a fast-finishing Philip Balnave, who won his Male 50-59 category in taking 2nd outright with a pleasing 1:20:58 to mark a superb recovery from a serious setback only a year ago. Next home in the Male Under 50 was Christopher Strom in 1:23:41, with Lachlan Dansie completing the podium placings with 1:25:27.

The ever-enthusiastic Masanori Chiba came 2nd in the Male 50-59 with 1:38:50 from Dave Graham’s 1:40:01. Keith Robbins took out the Male 60-69 in 1:51:51 from Ian Jarrett in 2:04:15; while Peter Allen bravely strode to a 2:24:44 to win the Male 70 and Over category.

Tiffany Knight was in a league of her own in the women’s race, winning in a sleek 1:36:49 from Shannon Proffitt in 1:43:05 and 3rd placed Danielle Kirby’s 1:43:44. Raewyn Horlock has bounced back strongly from injury last year to win the Female 50-59 in an impressive 1:46:55 from the ever-cheerful Pamela Blaikie’s 2:07:59; while Raisa Kolesnikova took out the Female 60-69 category with 1:56:33 from Mary Sheehan in 2:02:04.

The closest competition of the day, and a very significant one – that for the largest category – turned out to be a dead heat between the women and the men. The 71 finishers in the Female Under 50 exactly matched the 71 in the Male Under 50s of the 7km race!

A very impressive run of 30:04 saw Naomi Tancred take out the Female Under 50 in the 7km race, from Natalie Malligan in 30:57 and Sophie Bennie with 31:12. Kathleen Wallington took out the Female 50-59 with a fine run of 35:58 from Elizabeth Houseman’s 38:39; and Julie Sanders the Female 60-69 in 43:44 from Gladys Amestoy’s 44:28.

Robbie Neill was a strong leader and winner of the 7km circuit, taking out the top prize in the Male Under 50 with 24:17 from a close finish between 2nd-placed Mark Higgs with 24:58 and 3rd, Ben Forrest’s 25:04. Martin Cosby claimed main prize in the Male 50-59 with 28:43 from Michael Wilding’s 30:45; while Kieron Blackmore led the charge in the Male 60-69 with a fine 31:07; and David Iverarch continued his patronage of the Male 70 and Over category with another quality outing of 36:04.

Oliver White was a clear and impressive outright winner of the 4km race in a high calibre time of 14:14 – even more impressive as he was running from the Boys Under 13s, for which category he now claims the all-time course record! The previous record had stood for 9 years. His next rivals in his category had a close tussle for the minor placings as Jack Johnson’s 16:06 was just good enough to close out Mitchell Dean’s excellent run of 16:08. Marc Mardini took out the Boys Under 17 and 2nd place outright with an strong showing of 15:04, from Aidan Karaman’s 16:38 and Ethan Touchard in 17:45; while Skander Malcolm was fastest of the Male 17 and Over with 15:24 from Brendan Loughrey’s 16:20 and Scott Groves in 17:16.

Willow Sewell won the women’s 4km race from the Girls Under 17 category in a wonderful time of 16:23, next in her category being Charlotte Tsui in 17:21 and Alice Malcolm with 19:23. Piper Simpson was the fastest of the Girls Under 13 today with a super time of 16:41, placing her 2nd Female outright. After her in the Girls Under 13 were sisters Amber and Sophia Kusano with 17:46 and 19:28 respectively. Claire Simpson was the best of the Female 17 and Over finishing in 19:57, from Katherine Squire’s 20:43 and Felicity Schlederer in 21:35.

Our gratitude to all who helped make the day such a memorable and enjoyable occasion.