The penultimate race of this year’s Kent Fitness League took place in Allhallows Holiday Park near Rochester on Sunday February 8th, writes Jim Knight.

This year’s Kent Fitness League has been hard fought between the leading contenders, Sevenoaks AC, Petts Wood Runners, Thanet Road Runners, Canterbury Harriers, Maidstone & Medway AC, and Paddock Wood AC, with record numbers of competitors. The series comprises 7 gruelling cross-country races starting in Swanley in October, and touring the County with races in Knole Park, Eltham, Minnis Bay, Deal, Allhallows Park, and finishing on Sunday 22nd February in Mote Park Maidstone. The women’s team competition has been particularly close, with Sevenoaks AC (champions in 2020, 21, and 2022) trying to catch last year’s champions, Canterbury Harriers, and stay ahead of Petts Wood Runners.

The weather was absolutely beautiful! A relatively warm day with no wind as the 387 runners set off. The course was as technical as ever – gravel, mud, seaweed and ditches. The new one-lap course now incorporates a slippery hill and the gully has widened and so that runners had to drop into it and climb out via a short ladder. This was fine at the front of the race, but the runners at the rear of the race had to queue for the ladder. There had been many other good improvements though, with the new 200m 'no overtaking zone' between barbed wire fences and padded gates, but it is still one of the toughest courses in the series.

The Sevenoaks team was reduced to 23 runners through injuries to several key runners and the team feared that they might not have enough runners to maintain their 3rd place in the combined rankings. However, they need not have feared. Another outstanding performance from the women’s team saw them score a convincing victory, well ahead of Canterbury Harriers and Thanet Road Runners.

Sevenoaks’ Andrea Berquez ran brilliantly to win the women’s race, closely followed by Caroline Fenwick (5th and 2nd W45), Nicola Glover (7th and 2nd W35), Heather Fitzmaurice (14th and 1st W55), and Anna O’Donovan (17th). Caroline, Nicola and Heather all had their best performances of the series. The women’s team, winners on the day, remain in second place in the series.

The SAC men’s team was also lacking several runners through injury, but once again, Andrew Hutchinson ran well to finish in 23rd place followed by Keith Dowson (37th & 2nd M60), Dan Witt (53rd), Seb Naughton (59th) and Andy Ashlee (78th). The other scoring members of the men’s team were Brian Allen (80th), Andrew Bradley (85th) and Adan Bates (87th). The men’s team came 5th on the day and remain in 5th place in the series. 

The combined team came 3rd on the day and remain in 3rd place in the series. Once again there were great performances from some of Sevenoaks’ veteran runners with Neil Colvin 2nd M65, Jeremy Winter 3rd M70 and Sally Shewell 3rd W65. The full SAC results were:

The full results are here.

“Great credit to all our runners who tackled this tricky and in places treacherous course” said Dan Witt, SAC men’s captain. Caroline Fenwick, SAC ladies’ captain said, “The women's team did exceptionally well. Once again, they all pulled together to bring home the win for SAC. Andrea Berquez ran a fabulous race especially as she has been injured for the last 2 weeks. We were grateful to her to come along and support the ladies. We're hoping to get a strong team together for the final race at Mote Park.”

The 5th race in the 2025 / 26 Kent Fitness League series took place in Betteshanger Park, Deal on Sunday January 11th, writes Jim Knight. 447 runners, including 25 who had made the long journey from Sevenoaks, raced on the 5-mile course involving two laps of the perimeter of the Country Park. The course is flat and fast, favouring road and track runners although with some technical areas with short steep descents/ascents, narrow paths which caused a few bottlenecks and plenty of tree roots to navigate. It was considerably more muddy than last week’s race and still bitterly cold.  

The Sevenoaks team was missing several key members through injury and prior commitments, but the women’s team performed brilliantly again to secure second place behind a strong team from Canterbury Harriers. Sevenoaks’ Andrea Berquez ran exceptionally well to win the women’s race by 16 seconds from Dartford Harriers’ Kiera Pingo. She was followed by Caroline Fenwick (10th & 1st W45), Hannah Sangan (12th), Sophie Day (20th & 3rd W35), and Heather Fitzmaurice (30th & 2nd W55). 

In the men’s race, the Sevenoaks team was weakened by the absence of some key runners but still secured 5th place. The team was led home by Andrew Hutchinson (23rd), closely followed by Keith Dowson (49th & 2nd M60), Christopher Dick (52nd), Dan Chaplin (56th), and Dan Witt (68th). The other scoring members of the team were Andy Ashlee (97th), Seb Naughton (107th), and Adam Bates (124th).

Once again, there were great performances by our older runners, with Sally Shewell 3rd W65 and Jeremy Winter 2nd M70.

The full SAC results were:

The full results are here.

Women’s team Captain, Caroline Fenwick said 'On Friday it was looking like we might not have a women's team, and so a big thank you to all the ladies who came together to make the trip to Betteshanger. Andrea Berquez stepped in at the last minute to help, she then led a great battle with Kiera Pingo from Dartford Harriers to take the win, giving the results a great boost. Sophie Day took a tumble but carried on to come in the top 20. A special thank you to Maria Ashlee for her support with the team.'

Men’s team captain, Dan Witt said “Obviously the women's team performance eclipses the men's but I would just say that all the runners making the journey to get to Deal all put in a bit extra to try to make up for our lack in numbers. Andrew Hutchinson ran really well to lead the team home with one of his strongest runs in many years, despite being in marathon training mode, having completed a half marathon run only the day before.

The women’s team is still in 2nd place in the series behind Canterbury Harriers. The men’s team placed 6th on the day but remain in 5th place in the series. The combined team is now in 3rd place, only 2 points behind Thanet Road Runners. If all the team can be fit for the remaining two races, it should be possible to overtake Thanet and secure 2nd place. The runners now have a 4-week rest before the 6th race in the series in AllHallows near Rochester on February 8th.

The Kent Fitness League is a series of cross-country races between the 18 registered Athletics Clubs in Kent. Any number of club members can compete, but 13 are needed to score in the team competition – 8 men (of whom one must be aged 60+, two must be 50+ and two 40+) and 5 women (of whom one must be aged 55+ one 45+ and one 35+).

A team of 27 runners from Sevenoaks Athletics Club braved the bitter cold to run in the 4th race of the KFL series, in Minnis Bay, Birchington on Sunday January 4th, writes Jim Knight.

Despite freezing temperatures, 454 runners from across Kent took part in the race. Following the recent freezing weather, the course was modified as some of the dykes were judged to be too dangerous to cross, but it was still a tough 5.5-mile course with deep water in some of the dykes. 

The SAC team was missing several star runners, but still performed really well, with the women’s team coming 3rd and the men 5th. The combined team came 3rd.

Nicola Glover led the SAC women’s team home in 8th place (3rd W35), closely followed by Caroline Fenwick (9th, 2nd W45) and Sophie Day (14th). The other scoring members of the SAC women’s team were Heather Fitzmaurice (25th) and Sarah Philpott (44th). Once again, Sally Shewell ran brilliantly to be the fastest W65.

In the men’s race, Sevenoaks’ fastest runner was Guilaume Nineven in 12th place (2nd M40) followed by Ed Saunders (20th), Liam McLaughlin (23rd) and Andrew Hutchinson (31st). The other scoring members were Keith Dowson (49th and 2nd M60), Christopher Dick (65th), Dan Witt (84th), and Andy Ashlee (97th).

The full SAC results were:

The full results are here.

After 4 races, the men’s team is in 4th place, the women 2nd, and the combined team 2nd.

The next race is in Betteshanger Park, Deal on January 11th.

The Kent Fitness League is a series of cross-country races between the 18 registered Athletics Clubs in Kent. Any number of club members can compete, but 12 are needed to score in the team competition – 8 men (of whom one must be aged 60+, two must be 50+ and two 40+) and 4 women (of whom one must be aged 55+, one 45+ and one 35+).

The third race in the 2025/26 Kent Fitness League series took place in Knole Park on Sunday November 30th, writes Jim Knight.

Saturday’s rain clouds blew away and it was a fine cold dawn that greeted the team of 12 organisers from Sevenoaks AC who finished setting up the course markings very early on Sunday morning. They were soon joined by a further 25 marshals who would guide the 558 runners from the town car park to the start on Broad Walk and marshal the hilly 5-mile course. Running conditions were great. Cool, sunny, slightly slippery underfoot, but the park was looking at its best with the sunshine enhancing the brilliant Autumn colours of the trees.

At 9 am the race started. It was hotly contested for the first 3 miles, but in the second half, 29-year-old Kieran Hughes from Dartford Harriers gradually pulled away to win by 21 seconds, from 25-year-old Harry Young from Paddock Wood AC. An impressive winning time on the hilly, slippery course.

Liam McLaughlin, once again, led the Sevenoaks AC team home in 4th position, closely followed by Guillaume Nineven in 9th (& 2nd M40) Ed Saunders in 27th, and Andrew Hutchinson in 32nd. The other members of the Sevenoaks scoring team were Keith Dowson (46th & 2nd M60), William Palmer (52nd), Harvey Taylor (65th), and Team Captain Dan Witt (77th). Once again, there was a great performance from Jeremy Winter finishing 3rd M70.

The men’s team came 2nd, behind a strong team from Petts Wood Runners.

However, the star performers of the day were, once again, Sevenoaks AC’s ladies who scored their first win of the series with a narrow victory over Canterbury Harriers.

Fastest Sevenoaks lady was Hannah Sangan in 6th place, followed by Ladies’ Captain, Caroline Fenwick (10th & 3rd W45), and Nicola Glover (13th & 2nd W35). Great runs from Sophie Day (20th) and Heather Fitzmaurice (30th) brought the team home in 1st place. Another great performance from our W65s with Jane Wiley 1st and Sally Shewell 2nd.

After victory on the day, the Sevenoaks Women are lying 2nd in the series, only one point behind Canterbury Harriers.

Sevenoaks AC combined team were 2nd on the day and remain 2nd in the series, just two points behind Petts Wood. However it will take a massive effort from Sevenoaks in the remaining races to overtake Petts Wood, who have won the first three in the series.

The full SAC results were:

The full results are here.

The event was a great effort by everyone in the club, especially Race Director James Graham and his team of 40 marshals and helpers. A big thank-you to them and the 30 runners who competed for the club. Also a big thank-you, also, to the Kent Fitness League organisers (Stuart Wood and Brian Pitkin) and Race Referee (Dick Sharp) for their help and advice. The race could not take place without their support.

Men’s team captain, Dan Witt said, “A massive thanks to James Graham on behalf of the club for stepping up and taking on the Race Director role for the much-loved Knole Park fixture. The race would never have happened without his dedication and hard work. Also many thanks to his family assisting him and of course all the volunteers from within the club making the event possible.
The men’s team put in a really strong performance, building on the first two matches and being bolstered by the return of Ed Saunders to the team. Liam and Gui making the top 10 really shows the strength and ability we have in the club and all our other scorers and non-scorers beating other team’s scoring runners helped us to a strong third on the day. We are now tied on points with Thanet Road Runners for 2nd overall, so there’s plenty to motivate us all going into the New Year and aiming to consolidate a 2nd men’s placing at Minnis Bay.”

Women’s team captain, Caroline Fenwick added, “A fabulous result for SAC ladies' team. Racing on familiar ground has a huge advantage and the ladies proved it with a brilliant win over tough competition. Cheered on by Sevenoaks Athletics Club marshals we all put in the effort to secure the team's place. A special thank you to the person who made the greatest contribution, James Graham, who kindly organised a wonderful race which we could all then enjoy.”

The Kent Fitness League is a series of cross-country races between the 18 registered Athletics Clubs in Kent. Any number of club members can compete, but 13 are needed to score in the team competition – 8 men (of whom one must be aged 60+, two must be 50+ and two 40+) and 5 women (of whom one must be aged 55+ one 45+ and one 35+).

The next race in the series will be in Minnis Bay, Birchington on January 4th, 2026.