Sam effort by Hancox as he triumphs in Blyth run
SAM HANCOX was a runaway winner of yesterday’s Port of Blyth 10k Road Race.
The Morpeth Harrier, winner of the race in 2016, led throughout against 600 rivals as the field set off from Blyth Quayside on the run to Seaton Sluice and back.
Just over a mile into the race the Chris Waugh-trained athlete had quickly opened a 40-metre lead with Morpeth team-mates Karl Taylor and John Butters leading the charge behind.
The leading positions stayed the same at the turning point with the gap increasing all the time.
Hancox, back to top form after a spell on the sidelines last year through injury, kept up the momentum all the way to the finish to record 31min 51sec - just two seconds slower than his winning time two years ago.
After receiving his winner’s award, a delighted Hancox said: “I am pleased with that, I felt in good from the off so decided to take it on and no one really went with me.
“Training has been going well so I knew I was in decent shape and while a win is a win it would have been nice if I could have dipped under my time of two years ago.
“Having said that, I am happy with the way I ran and can have no complaints.’’
Taylor finished 54 seconds adrift of Hancox to claim second place while Butters made it a Morpeth one-two-three in third spot a further 21 seconds adrift.
Sparrow Morley (Tyne Bridge), a thirdplace finisher in last weekend’s North Tyneside 10k, crossed the line in fourth place. The women’s race was a slightly closer affair with London Marathonbound Tracy Millmore repeating her 2017 victory in a similar time - 36:28 - to last year. The Birtley runner finished in 26th place overall, just six seconds and three places ahead of Jarrow and Hebburn’s Alex Sneddon. Heaton’s Danielle Smythe continued her run of improved form to finish in fourth place.
MORPETH Olympian Nick McCormick returned to action after a four-year spell of inactivity to contest the Podium 5k at Barrowford for a second time.
The Morpeth Harrier finished in eighth place in 15:07, a time 19 seconds quicker than the time he posted in the race over the same course in March.
On that occasion he crossed the line in 19th place.
Tynedale’s Adam Pratt set a new pb of 15:53 to finish 22nd.
Bolton’s Tom Lancashire was first across the line in 14:19 while the women’s race was won by Preston’s Becky Rigby in 16:30.
Jarrow and Hebburn’s Georgia Campbell claimed third, also in a new pb of 17:04 - an improvement of 24 seconds on her previous best which she ran when finishing fourth in the Quayside Business Forum race last August.