Sun shines on Thatcham runners
This was the scene at the start of the Thatcham 10k on Saturday morning where 245 competitors from keen club athletes to families and senior citizens took part in the mult-terrain race starting at the Lower Way playing field and circling the Discovery Center and lakes. The fine weather brought out the crowds to cheer on the competitors.
The overall winner was Jack Boswell from Aldershot, Farnham & District Athletics Club with a time of 00:35:04 followed by Matthew Wooldridge at 00:36:29 in second place closely followed by Andy Goddard of Basingstoke & Mid Hants AC taking third place with a time of 00:36:38.
Following his victory, Boswell told Thatcham Town Radio that he had recently recovered from a previous injury picked up while running and said: “It was good and nice weather for it. I came into it not knowing how fit I was. I led it more or less from the start and stayed quite strong until the end. It turned out really good, the marshals were really good and a well set out course.” Following his success on Saturday, he plans to run half marathons in Helsinki and Valencia later this year.
The first female to cross the line was Emily Craggs from Newbury Athletics Club with a time of 00:45:17
After crossing the line, Craggs said: “I was really pleased today and a bit quicker than I was expecting. I’ve been doing some cross country but this was my first race of the road and track season. I felt good but thought I got off a little too quick and was a little worried when I looked at my watch and saw how fast I was running but I managed to slow it down a little bit and thankfully kept it going.”
Race Director, Cllr Ben Schiffer-Harte was happy with the second year of the Thatcham 10k and said that the junior race also went well, with just under 50 young people taking part. “The weather has been lovely and we even had an ice cream van. I’ve had a superb group behind me, the committee and it’s going to go on for the third year next year. Today has been about being healthy, keeping fit and community spirit and showing that Thatcham can have its own event just like its big brother over in Newbury. I would like to thank our sponsors as well as Thatcham Town Council. It’s been fantastic with a real community spirit.”
Click here for the full results of Thatcham 10k 2025