Renner slashes minutes from own record

Press, 17 December 1984, Page 34

Renner slashes minutes from own record

Wendy Renner (New Brighton) was in a class of her own yesterday when she slashed 3min 19s off the record time she set in the 30km Gebbies Classic last year, to win the women’s section of the race in Ihr 51min 575. Renner cut nearly nine minutes off the record when she won last year. Yesterday she finished more than 16min ahead of the next women runner, Anne Ross (Rovers), who won the

women’s section of last week’s 15km Lincoln Lope. Colleen McKenzie (Olympic), who was third in the Lincoln Lope, also finished third in yesterday’s race, as well as being first woman veteran home. In the open men’s section, an outsider, D. Bright, from Te Awamutu, shook up the field at the start by taking an early lead from the Sign of the Kiwi down through Governor’s Bay. However,

Kevin O’Sullivan (University) hauled him back just before Teddington. O’Sullivan had a break of about 400 m on Dave Macdonald, last year’s winner and record holder at the bottom of the climb to Gebbies Pass, but it was Macdonald who was first to the top in a fine display of hill running. Although O’Sullivan tried hard, it was Macdonald who began to pull away in the last few kilometres from the Sign of the Bellbird to finish at the Sign of the Kiwi in Ihr 37min 535, 43s outside the record set last year. It is also the third consecutive year that Macdonald has won the race. Results.— Men: Macdonald 1:37:53, 1; O’Sullivan 1:40:37, 2; I. Milne (University) 1:43:10, 3; M. Radcliffe (New Brighton) 1:43:12, 4; R. Hood (Ashburton) 1:43:41, 5; C. Cox (Olympic) 1:45:02, 6; G. Clark (Toe H) 1:46:22, 7; J. Hill (Anglican) 1:47:49, 8; C. Dowie (Nth Canty) 1:48:11, 9; D. Bright 1:49:19, 10; D. Reese (University) 1:49:31, 11; R. Campbell (Christchurch) 1:49:59, 12; A. Hall (Sumner) 1:50:12, 13; S. Taylor (Olympic) 1:50:16, 14; G. Kerr (St Martins) 1:50:23, 15. Veteran men: N. Reid (Olympic) 1:51:30, 1; W. Baker (Christchurch) 1:54:10, 2; B. Carpenter (New Brighton) 1:55:50, 3; R. McNamara (United) 1:56:16, 4; D. Neill (Olympic) 1:56:57, 5. Over 50, P. McGregor (Rovers) 2:13:50, 1; Over 60, J. McGuigan (Rovers) 2:21:03, 1. Women: Renner 1:51:57, 1; Ross 2:08:20, 2; McKenzie 2:15:46, 3 and Ist veteran; H. Grant (Toe H) 2:16:31, 4 and 2nd veteran; A. Dahl (Sumner) 2:17:49, 5; S. Clark (Christchurch) 2:21:35, 6 and 3rd veteran.