Ifan Lloyd recalls his latest age cat victory at the Swansea half-marathon and Masters International match..
Ifan Lloyd recalls his latest age cat victory at the Swansea half-marathon and Masters International match
*My thanks to Ifan once again for sharing his unique racing experiences.
Swansea half marathon and Masters international this morning. A record day for the half marathon which incorporated an International event for Masters (35yo+) between Wales, England, Northern Ireland and UK Armed Forces.
The England contingent was easily the largest squad, but Wales were also strongly represented at these increasingly popular events that take place throughout the year.
After a 13-month gap since my last half marathon, I felt a bit rusty but managed to hold off a strong finish by fellow West Walian Dave Warren to take first place in the men 65-69 age category. Finished in a time of 1h 20m 41sm which was 3 seconds slower than my Newport half marathon in April 2025.
Dave James finished just outside the medals to close in fourth overall and third Welshman. The wind was a factor but, fortunately, the rain held off leading to several Welsh Masters recording personal bests. There were many gritty performances by other Welsh athletes, no doubt boosted by the honour of running in the colours of Wales.
Another fantastic run by Alan Davies to win the 70-74yo category backed up by David Gibson who finished second, this only two weeks after taking age category silver in the prestigious Cape Town marathon two weeks ago.
As a competing athlete, all I have to do is turn up on the day (and do the training!). A lot of work goes on behind the scenes to ensure everything runs smoothly – this very much on an “athlete first” basis.
A huge shout out to Bernie Jones and team for planning, coordinating and managing the squads….and for efficiently compiling the results for the medal ceremony!
https://www.swanseahalfmarathon.co.uk/mizuno-swansea
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