Aussie Coming To Clean Up Christchurch

Aussie Coming To Clean Up Christchurch

While New Zealand’s top runners vie for the national title in this weekend’s Christchurch Airport Half Marathon, a collection of Aussies will be doing their best to upset trans-Tasman relations.

On a new course back in the inner-city, the 35th edition of the annual Queen’s Birthday Weekend event will include what is shaping up as the best half marathon on New Zealand shores for several seasons.

Among women, the past two Christchurch Half Marathon winners – 2014 winner Gabrielle O’Rourke and 2013 winner Alex Williams – will line up again, as will 2014 national champion Sally Gibbs, who was second in Christchurch in 2013. But all three women will have to be in their best form.

National 10,000m champion Lydia O’Donnell and former 10,000m champion Rachel Kingsford are both on the start line, as are former national champions Fiona Crombie and Penny Peskett. Crombie and Kingsford will have a hometown advantage on the new central city course, but O’Donnell has the fastest recent form over the half marathon distance, with a win in last week’s Huntley Half Marathon in 1hr 17min and a fourth place in last year’s Gold Coast half Marathon in a personal best time of 1hr 15min 49secs.

Those three are favourites for the national title at stake, but not necessarily for line honours as two Australians take top billing. Tarli Bird is the current Australian marathon champion and Milly Clarke is the current Gold Coast Half Marathon champion. Both women have best half marathon times of 1hr 14min and while Bird is a longer distance specialist, Clarke comes from the shorter distance and surprised even herself with the prestigious Gold Coast win last year.

Another surprise winner last year was the Christchurch Airport half marathon champion, Callan Moody. The 27 year enjoyed a break-out year in 2014, with his Christchurch win leading to national titles over cross country and 10k on the road. In defending his title back in Christchurch he has a chance to add the national half marathon title, but knows he’ll probably need to run faster than his 1hr 06min winning time of a year ago.

Co-favourite would be last year’s Christchurch runner-up, Malcolm Hicks. Based now in Auckland, the former Christchurch runner has won national titles on the track, road and cross country and has the fastest 5000m and 10,000m in the field. While still a relative novice over the longer distances, he’ll have learnt a lot from his second place last year and would be the one to watch if he’s anywhere near the front in the final 400m.

Far from a two-horse race, however, there are up to 10 other contenders. Wellington’s Dougal Thorburn recently added the national mountain running title to his 2013 national marathon title, has a similar half marathon best to Moody and was third here in 2011. Auckland’s Aaron Pulford and Wanaka’s Caden Shields were fourth and sixth behind Moody last year, but have both since broken 66min for the half marathon and Pulford is fresh off a fast 13min 51sec 5000m in Los Angeles. Recent Rotorua half marathon winner Tim Stewart and several time national medallist Jono Jackson will be in the hunt, while the performances of three teenagers - national junior cross country and road champion Joshua Baan, Oceania junior 10,000m champion Matt Dryden and recent Rotorua half marathon runner up Michael Voss - will be watched with interest. And if this isn’t enough, Moody also has to contend with his own flatmate, training partner and national medallist, Daniel Balchin.

But it doesn’t end there. Just as in the women’s race, the runners with the fastest credentials aren’t even eligible for the national title on offer. Australians Stephen Dineen and Jonathan Peters are the favourites for first across the line. Peters has run 66min-flat and a 2:20 marathon, while Dineen has run 65min 50secs and last year won the prestigious Melbourne Half Marathon. A recent 29min 08secs for 10k by Dineen illustrates that’s he’s ready to race.

The Christchurch Airport Marathon is renowned as the fastest race in New Zealand and race director, Chris Cox, says this year will be no different. “It’s a big year for us,” says Cox. “Our 35th anniversary and the first time back in the city since the earthquakes. So it’s great to have such high quality fields and a national title race.”

“This new course is definitely as fast as anything we’ve had in the past. With such high quality fields we won’t have to wait long for them to prove it.”

Starting at 8:30am on Sunday, the new-look Christchurch Airport Marathon will start and finish in Cathedral Square and take in Hagley Park and the Avon River. As well as the feature full marathon and half marathon distances, there is a 10k option and the Kids’ Mara’Fun over either 1k or 2k or 3k.

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