Greig and Gierjatowicz to Challenge Elly and Debut Man Abu-Rezeq for Marathon Title

Kyle Greig bids to become only the third Scot to win the men’s title in the Baxters Loch Ness marathon which celebrates its 15th anniversary on Sunday, but the Forres Harriers club member knows he’ll have to pull out all the stops if he is to be successful.

Simon Pride, in 2004 and 2005, and Ross Houston in 2012, are the only Scots to have won the prestigious race which has always attracted a cosmopolitan field of runners as can be seen from past results. Ethiopian-born Great Britain international Tomas Abyu has chalked up the most wins, having taken the title four times, while the fastest time clocked over the Highland course stands to Kenya’s Simon Tonui who recorded 2hr 20min 13secs in 2009.

Greig, who is Health and Fitness Manager at Aberdeen Sports Village, completed his first marathon just five months ago when he ran 2:25:23 at London, but feels he’s ready to improve on that performance if things go his way this weekend.

He said: “My training has gone well and I’d like to think I can get a personal best time. I’ve been averaging about 90 miles a week in training, with a highest week of 100 and it has all been fine. I’ve no injuries and no niggles, so I guess there’s no excuses. I had a good run when winning the Scottish trail running championships in Fife recently and a few other small race victories.

“I have studied a description of the route and I think it will be a case of holding back in the first half as there’s a lot of downhill running. So, I’ll try to save something for the final hill, with five or six miles to go, but hopefully this sort of course will suit me.

It’s difficult to tell how it will go, however, as it depends on who else is there and on whether I get things right on the day.”

Greig’s opposition is formidable and includes Lancashire-based Kenyan Tarus Elly, pictured below, who has a remarkable record of consistency in the race, having won in 2013 and 2015, as well as placing third in 2014.

Elly, who was only 10secs outside his best time when recording 2:25:19 twelve months ago, is aiming for another top drawer performance this weekend. He said: “I love this race. It is my favourite marathon of all time. It means so much to me as it was my first ever marathon in 2013 and I won it. I have been busy training and I’m ready to defend my title.”

Another contender who has come close to winning on a number of occasions in recent years is Edinburgh-based Polish runner Patryk Gierjatowicz. He was second behind Elly in 2013 and second again behind Abyu in 2014 before taking third position last year when Elly defeated Abyu for top spot.

Gierjatowicz recorded his best time of 2:24:00 at London in April when he finished just ahead of Greig and he showed decent form last month when winning the Scottish East District half marathon title at Barry Buddon in 1:11:23.

The man they may all have to be most fearful about, however, is Altrincham’s Mohammad Abu-Rezeq . The Jordanian runner will be making his full marathon debut in the Highlands, but the 32 year-old has carved out a name for himself in 10Km and half marathons over the past few seasons. This will be his second appearance in Scotland this year, having won the Alloa half marathon in April when he posted a time of 1:05:40. If he can translate that sort of form into the marathon, he will be difficult to beat.

Abu-Rezeq is confident of putting on a good show and feels he can crack the course record, saying: “My main aim is to get first place. I’d like to run 2:17 or 2:18, but it depends on the race and how things go. My training has been going well and everything is aimed at running that sort of time.”

Jenn Wetton is the clear favourite to win the women’s title although the Central AC runner hasn’t competed over the marathon distance since winning the Baxters race in 2014 in what remains her best time of 2:46:06.

She said: “I didn’t plan running any marathons last year, but then I had injury problems as well. I was going to do the Manchester marathon this April but my Achilles flared up and I decided to give it a miss. Since then things have been going quite well and I’m pleased with my preparations.

“When I did the Baxters race two years ago I didn’t feel as though I ran as well as I could have, so I’m hopeful that I can improve on my best time. I have a time in mind but I’ll keep that to myself. I still have to run the race and get to the finish line.”

Wetton’s recent results suggest she is in good shape. She set a course record time when winning the Scottish East District title at Barry Buddon at the end of August and earlier this month she struck silver in the Scottish 10km championships at Stirling.

Others who should feature in the battle for podium positions include Glasgow’s Victoria Hunter who has performed well in ultra distance races in recent years and Cambridge athlete Pia Thiemann who ran 3:00:21 at London this year.

Cambuslang’s Erica Christie is one of five runners to have competed in all 14 previous Baxters Loch Ness marathons and who will be there again on Sunday. The others are Fiona Rennie (Carnegie Harriers), Kenneth Stewart (Perth Road Runners), John Cassells (Carnegie Harriers) and Lucy Mackay (Bellahouston Road Runners).

Christie finished second in the women’s division of the inaugural Baxters race in 2002. Her quickest Loch Ness time of 3:06:51 was set when finishing fourth in 2009 and her slowest of 3:18:47 came in 2013 when she was second in the over-50 age group. She was first over-50 in 2014 and second over-50 last year when recording 3:16:00. That’s pretty impressive consistency.

Local runners in the marathon will be competing for the HSPC Gerald Cooper Memorial Trophy which is presented as the first Highland runner across the finish line.

The race boasts a generous prize kitty with £1,500 on offer for the first man and woman to complete the course while cash prizes are available for the top five finishers. There’s also generous awards for leading masters runners in the over-40, 50 and 60 age divisions.

Baxters Loch Ness Marathon Course Records

Men: Simon Tonui (Kenya) 2hr 20min 13sec (2009)
Women: Megan Crawford (Fife AC) 2hr 44min 50secs (2015)

Neil Renault is to defend his title in the Baxters River Ness 10km. The Edinburgh AC runner (pictured right centre, along with Kenny Wilson, left and Will Mackay, right) has made a late decision to compete and vows to improve on his 2015 performance.

He said: “I hope to run quicker in the 10km than I ran last year if I can freshen up this week. I’ve been running many more 100+ miles per week than I have done in the past two or three years, so I’m getting there. Recently I won the Kyles 10 mile race at Tighnabruaich, setting a course record of around 53mins on a tough course, beating the old one by 4mins.”

Renault’s opponents include Aberdeen AAC’s Scottish 10,000 metres track champion Will Mackay who aims to go one better than last year when he finished second.

John Newsom (Inverness Harriers), who has occupied all three positions on the podium in previous years, will also be a threat. The Nairn-based athlete won in 2013, was second in 2012 and took third spot third in 2014. He stepped up to the marathon last year and finished fourth in 2:32:54.

Scottish North District champion Kenny Wilson (Moray Road Runners), third last year, is looking for another strong performance while Stephen Mackay (Inverness Harriers) will be hoping to translate his 800m and 1500m track speed into a good road performance.

Hungarian international Fanni Gyurko (Central AC), left, will be bidding for more success on her second visit to the Highland capital this year. In March the Central AC runner set a personal best time of 1:17:45 when winning the women’s division of the Inverness half marathon. Now her sights are set on the Baxters River Ness 10km prize. She faces some top quality opposition, however, led by local favourite Jenny Bannerman (Inverness Harriers) who won this race two years ago.

Aberdeen AAC’s Nicola Gauld, who was runner-up in 2012 and 2013, and third last year, hopes to have recovered from an ankle injury in time to take her place on the starting line. The former Scottish 1500m track champion is certainly capable of challenging for top spot if fully fit.

Scottish standard distance triathlon champion Debbie Moore (Metro Aberdeen) who hopes to represent Scotland in the multisport event at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, should also be in the mix for the top prizes.

Other contenders for high finishing positions include Bracknell’s Charlotte Firth, Sarah Liebnitz (Inverness Harriers), Gemma Cormack (Aberdeen AAC), Ellie Buchan (Aberdeen AAC), Marie Baxter (Garioch Road Runners) and Louise Cartmell (Moray Road Runners).

Cash awards go to the top three men and women in the Baxters River Ness 10Km with voucher awards to the leading three over-40,50 and 60 age group men and women.

Baxters River Ness 10K Course Records

Men: Amanuel Hagos (Shettleston) 29min 35secs (2008)
Women: Cathy Mutwa (Kenya) 33min 46sec (2006)

Race Director Malcolm Sutherland is looking forward to an exciting day of action and reflected on 15 years of remarkable progress. He said: “More than 8,000 people have signed up for this year’s festival of running, which is excellent. It all started in 2002 when around 600 runners took part in our first marathon. Since then the event has grown in popularity and we have added the 10km, 5km and children’s runs to the programme.

“We are delighted to welcome, this weekend, five runners who have taken part in every one of our marathons so far, which is a fantastic achievement.

“Runners travel from all over the world to take part with 47% of our marathoners coming from outside Scotland, 12% of whom are from overseas while 41 different countries are represented. We have 25 Japanese pensioners taking part, aged from 60-79, 23 of whom are tackling the marathon with the other two running in the 10km.

“The marathon is held over a stunning route along the shores of Loch Ness, and the 10km, which includes a Corporate Challenge in which 31 teams representing 22 companies will take part, are obviously the showcase events attracting many top quality performers as well as thousands of club and fun runners.

“But we also have huge numbers taking part in the Baxters River Ness 5km fun run and in the Wee Nessie children’s run. We are delighted to see runners of all ages taking part in what is truly a wonderful family day out. Our oldest runner is 80 year-old Audrey Macbeth from Newton Mearns, who is doing the 10km while we have a five month old baby boy in the Wee Nessie.

“There will be limited entries available to the Baxters River Ness 5K Fun Run and Wee Nessie over the race weekend at the Event Village.

“We try to cater for participants of all levels of ability and experience. Everyone is treated in the same friendly and supportive way and they’ll all enjoy a wonderful Highland reception.”

“There’s a superb atmosphere at the races with huge number of people turning out to watch and cheer on the competitors, particularly at the finish in Bught Park where the Event Village is located. As usual there will be plenty of activities at the Village to keep everyone entertained and there is always a fantastic atmosphere around the finish area.”