On Thursday 07 December we hosted the annual Fulham Running Club Xmas Party and Awards at The Railway in Putney.
Another amazing year
Fulham Running Club had yet another amazing year (its 19th!). Whether our usual club runs and intervals, road races, cross country, ultra marathons, or even simply parkrun, this amazing community club has something for everyone.
Boaty McBoatrace had its 6th outing and keeps getting better. And the numbers for the stagger race keeps growing.
We launched a coaching group to help people improve, but also to help people discover that trails and track aren’t as bad as they think. And cross country has seen huge turnouts (both runners and cheerers).
And even during the tough times, where we sadly said goodbye to the wonderful Jilly Parker, we puled together as one community to fund a memorial tree being planted in her honour in Bishop’s Park.
There is so much more to celebrate with this club, which moves us onto the award winners, hosted by Rick Cannon and Richard Morris.
New Bandit of the Year (Male)
2022 winner: Henry Grantham-Wright
Nominees included: Benjamin Skjold, Callum Mason, Dylan Williams, Ed Bruce, Jonty Bennett, Joseph Houlton, Josh Hinh, Luc Janssens, Nick Bell, Pat Taylor, Scott Gruber and Tim Fozzard.
This year’s winner was selected because:
He is at track and Thursday club run week in week out and at any socials as well. He’s a ray of sunshine that keeps getting quicker - imagine how quick he could be if he wore the right colour stripes.
The 2023 winner is Dylan Williams
New Bandit of the Year (Female)
2022 winner: Alice Malin
Nominees included: Bella Clover, Cecilia Montauban, Charlotte Clover, Chloe Taylor, Claire Shanahan, Eve Chan, Jade Maclaren, Kathryn White, Lara Bird-Leakey, Sally Bland, Sandra Liscio
Honourable mention to: Charlotte Clover
This year’s winner was selected because:
She is loud, proud, bright, and great. She really embraced the ethos of FRC and runs and cheers for joy. She's really thrown herself into everything, especially if it's fancy dress!
The 2023 winner is Sandra Liscio
Modest Achiever of the Year
2022 winner: Alice Heath
Nominees included: Alex Vanstone, Alice Heath, Alice Malin, Alice Riddell-Webster, Ben Cameron, Callum Mason, Cara Coughlan, Clare Bossom (/hunter), Claudia Balic , Emma Less, Emma Thurston, Hannah Cox, Lara Bird-Leakey, Richard Morris, Sophie McKeeman, Tom Mackay
This year’s winner was selected because:
Some amazing runs, and always so humble (and is a mountain goat living London). She continuously scoring for the club at races, and – in true modesty – gets on several podiums, yet never makes any fuss about it.
The 2023 winner is Sophie McKeeman
Most improved runner (male)
2022 winner: Sam Kelly
Nominees included: Alex Vanstone, Callum Mason, Chris Shaw, Dylan Williams, Gabriel Glencross, Jonty Bennett, Leo Gebbie, Tom Mackay
This year’s winner was selected because:
He's had a great year, put in the effort and it's paid off, PBs everywhere. He’s smashed it across all distances all year long and does it with such a lovely, understated attitude. He did Fulham Palace parkrun and incredible half marathon PB, all after leaving Le Fez at 3am.
The 2023 winner is Gabriel Glencross
Most improved runner (female)
2022 winner: Cara Coughlan
Nominees included: Alice Malin, Amy Kinsella, Bailee Apple, Emma Thurston, Katie Gow, Katherine Elmore-Jones, Lucy Butler, Mia Gomez
This year’s winner was selected because:
She has seen amazing results recently but always respectfully understated. She runs with a smile on her face and a beautiful sense of joy. She smashed it in the Ealing Half in 1:27 and then followed that up with a quite frankly insane mindboggling 1:24 in Kingston.
The 2023 winner is Alice Malin
Volunteer of the Year
2022 winner: Bob Lynam
Nominees included: Bob Lynam, Emilyn Hutchinson, Georgia Hamer, Katie Gow, Lara Bird-Leakey, Laure Selle, Lauren Feltham, Rick Cannon, Sam Kelly, Sophie Denman, Stuart MacDougall, Tim Haughton, Trevor Ingram
Honourable mention to: Sophie Denman
This year’s winner was selected because:
She fully jumped in with both feet to the club over the last 18 months. She is inspiring, full of energy, and ensures new people feel welcome. She’s the first person to celebrate everyone’s achievements, but rarely mentions her own.
The 2023 winner is Lara Bird-Leakey
Outstanding Achievement (under 35)
2022 winner: Piers Mulroney
Nominees included: Alice Malin, Charlie Sandison, Fred Levy, Gabriel Glencross, Georgia Hamer, Hannah Cox, Lara Bird-Leakey, Liberty Thompson, Lucy Butler, Oscar Unsworth, Reka Kormendi, Rosie Cook, Sam Kelly, Tom Mackay
This year’s winner was selected because:
She has seen huge improvements over the year, including doing 36kms exclusively in Battersea Park laps in preparation for her first marathon. She absolutely smashed her first marathon putting in the hard work and consistent training to get there.
The 2023 winner is Lucy Butler
Outstanding Achievement (over 35)
2022 winner: Alice Riddel-Webster
Nominees included: Alice Riddell-Webster, Ben Cameron, Ben Thornton, Bob Empson, Claire Bracher, Fred Levy, Gareth Hopkins, Katherine Elmore-Jones, Lauren Feltham, Nick Marriage, Trevor Ingram
Honourable mention: Katherine Elmore-Jones
This year’s winner was selected because:
He is the King of Trails but doesn't brag about it. He has smashed multiple ultras throughout the year (Tarrowara, Montreux, Morzine and then Chamonix) and we can’t wait to see what he smashes next!
The 2023 winner is Ben Cameron
Male XC Runner of the Year
This year’s winner was selected because:
He has come to every XC race, always competing to his absolute max. He is the most consistent bandit at cross country, quietly going about his business and doing the work.
The 2023 winner is Callum Mason
Female XC Runner of the Year
This year’s winner was selected because:
She is very involved with the club & racing! She has come to every cross country race, showing her dedication in the dark winter months. She turns up for every event and puts in consistent effort when we'd all rather be inside.
The 2023 winner is Charlotte Clover
Male Runner of the Year
2022 winner: Joe Houlton
Nominees included: Ben Cameron, Charlie Sandison, Ed Bruce, Gabriel Glencross, Joe Houlton, Tom Mackay, Trevor Ingram
This year’s winner was selected because:
He is Full-Fulham: a great racer, always shows up at XC races and rarely misses a social occasion! His achievements are incredible, but second only to the support he shows to the club and its members. His achievements are through an ethos of finding joy in running and connecting with others in the process. He also has the club record for Berlin marathon and leads the way consistently at XC.
The 2023 winner is Tom Mackay
Female Runner of the Year
2022 winner: Sophie Denman
Nominees included: Alice Malin, Hannah Cox, Katie Gow, Lara Bird-Leakey, Rosie Cook
This year’s winner was selected because:
She has been smashing every single distance by some margin with amazing performances and improvements through the year. Her PBs are unstoppable and she’s always so lovely. She is the Cross Country Queen. And, even after smashing the London Marathon and achieving a PB, she still went on to run another PB at York Marathon (all of this after a boozy trip to Nice)
The 2023 winner is Katie Gow
The non-running categories
And to round it off, we also had five new non-running categories at this years awards. The winners were:
Most likely to be hungover at a run/race: Josh Hinh (he's always so hungover it looks like his eyes hurt)
Funniest Non-Running Related Moment 2023 : Tim Fozzard as The T-rex of Stevenage Rd!
Celebrity Look-A-Like 2023: Gareth Hopkins as Ricky Martin
Most Laps of London 2023: Emma Thurston (she is dizzy with laps of Battersea Park!)
Biggest Smile 2023: Cara Coughlan (always brings the vibes and brightens everyone’s day)
Written by Rick Cannon, Club Chairman
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