KAREN SETS RECORD ON WORLD STAGE
READING Athletics Club master w40 athlete Karen Burles has broken the GB 200m record at the World Masters Championships.
Competing in Tampere, Finland, Karen raced exceptionally to take the bronze medal while she set a new GB 200m record.
As well as being a mother to three children, Karen is the owner of Elite Conditioning and has just returned from her first ever World Masters Athletics Championships.
Having rejoined the athletics world back in 2019 Karen started training with her old club Reading AC and coach Nathan.
Following a short winter training she became Double GB indoor w40 60m and 200m champion in 2020.
Karen continued to train throughout all the lockdowns to keep her fitness intact and in 2021, full access meant she could go back to full training.
Competing in the w40 age category and competing as the eldest at 45, her focus turned to chasing times and not people.
Just weeks before Karen became double GB w40 outdoor Champion over 100m and 200m
In a gruelling three rounds of competition and each round did not disappoint as she finished second in the heats with 12.69, third in the semi-finals with 12.51 and fifth in the final with 12.76.
After some treatment on a hip flexor strain picked up days before travelling to Tampere, she turned her attention to the 200m race.
In the heats, she earned second place and an automatic place into the semi finals in a huge lifetime PB of 25.54 and a new W40 200m British record.
The wind turned the next day and after a very tough semi final Karen made it through to the finals with a non favourable lane one draw in the final despite having ran the second fastest time in the world.
She came off the bend in eighth place but used her speed endurance to pull through into bronze medal position.
Just three days before she turned 45, Karen proudly stepped onto the world championship podium collecting her bronze medal as new British record holder.
Karen said: “To say I am over the moon isn’t enough and still now it is all sinking in.
“I think it might take a while.
“I dared to dream and achieved the unthinkable.”
“One huge motivator is obviously my children, to inspire them to dare to dream and achieve the unthinkable in whatever they want in life.
“But also it’s my work and clients, I’ve lived breathed fitness since my early teens. Health & fItness is my passion and I am lucky enough to live my passion through my work.”
Saturday, July 30
FOOTBALL
Sky Bet Championship Blackpool 1-0 Royals
Pre-season friendlies Bracknell Town 4-2 Reading
U23s
Guildford City 1-3 Sumas Hanworth Villa v Reading City Met Police 3-1 Binfield
CRICKET
Home Counties Premier
Division 1
Buckingham Town (166 all out) lost to Finchampstead (169-5)
Wokingham (90 all out) lost to
Aston Rowant (180 all out)
Home Counties Division 2 Oxford Downs (221 all out)
drew Wargrave (174-9)
BCM Championship Braywood (197 all out) lost to
West Reading (203 all out) Shinfield (99-5) beat Great
Kingshill (98 all out)
CMB Premiership
Emmbrook and Bearwood (144-6) beat Braywood 2s (140 all out)
BCL Premier Division Sandhurst (215-7) beat Stratfield Turgis (146 all out)
West Reading 2s (109 all out) lost to Waltham St Lawrence (110-4) Woodcote (174 all out) beat
Shinfield 2s (96 all out)
BCL Division 1A
Checkendon (236 all out) lost
to Earley (296-5)
Reading Lions (151-3) beat Berkshire Royals (150 all out)
Reading United (119-1) beat
Stallions (118 all out)
BCL Division 1B
Crowthorne & Crown Wood 2s (141 all out) lost to Rangers (144-5)
Earley 2s (127 all out) lost to
Reading United 2s (293-9) Stallions 2s (124 all out) lost to
Farley Hill 2s (129-3) Warfield (230-3) beat Shinfield
3s (228 all out)
Woodley (241-9) beat Twyford
and Ruscombe (208-9)
Thames Valley Division 1 Eversley (216-7) drew Cookham Dean (269 all out)
Thames Valley Division 2B Binfield (184 all out) lost to
Royal Ascot (251-9)
Hurst (315-4 dec) beat
Wokingham 2s (151 all out) Reading (246-6 dec) beat Sulhamstead & Ufton (160 all out)
Finchampstead 2s (205-5) beat
Fleet (84 all out)
Thames Valley Division 3A White Waltham (334-7) lost to
Sonning (337-3)
Wargrave 2s (267 all out) beat Theale & Tilehurst (171 all out)
Tuesday, August 2
FOOTBALL*
Combined Counties Premier
North
Sumas L-L Wallingford &
Crowmarsh
Saturday, August 6
FOOTBALL
Sky Bet Championship Royals v Cardiff City
Combined Counties Premier
North
Ardley United v Sumas
Combined Counties Division
One
Woodley United v Spartans
Youth
London Samurai Rovers v
Eversley & California Berks County v Molesey
Pre-season friendly Hamworthy United v Binfield
CRICKET
Home Counties Premier
Division
Finchampstead v Henley
High Wycombe v Wokingham
Home Counties Division 2 Wargrave v Harefield
BCM Championship
Ballinger Waggoners v
Shinfield
Crowthorne & Crown Wood v
Holmer Green
CMB Premiership Hurley v Emmbrook and
Bearwood
BCL Premier Division Goring on Thames v West
Reading 2s
Shinfield 2s v Sandhurst Waltham St Lawrence v
Woodcote
Welford Park v Farley Hill
BCL Division 1A
Earley v Reading United Silchester v Reading Lions Stallions v Berkshire Royals West Reading 3s v Peppard
Stoke Row
Thames Valley Division 1 Gerrards Cross v Eversley
Thames Valley Division 2B Fleet v Hurst
Wokingham 2s v Binfield Cove v Reading Sulhamstead & Ufton v
Finchampstead 2s
Thames Valley Division 3A Aldershot v Wargrave 2s Kidmore End v White Waltham Sonning v Windsor
Thames Valley Division 5B Reading 2s v Bagshot 2s Eversley 2s v Sonning 2s Binfield 2s v Newbury Finchampstead 4s v
Bracknell
Sunday, August 7
CRICKET
Home Counties Women’s
League Finchampstead v Moreton Binfield v Henley
Tuesday, August 9
FOOTBALL Carabao Cup Royals v Stevenage