RUNNERS from the Saffron Striders produced a string of superb performances as veterans and first-timers pulled out all the stops for the world’s biggest road race.

Virgin London Marathon 2011

RUNNERS from the Saffron Striders produced a string of superb performances as veterans and first-timers pulled out all the stops for the world’s biggest road race.

Fiona Tideswell ran her seventh London Marathon and smashed her previous personal best by finishing in just 3hrs 12mins 44secs.

Her sub 3hrs 15mins time last year secured her a UK Athletics Championship place in this year’s race – and her performance on Sunday means that she has gained a spot again for the 2012 race.

She was the 169th woman to finish in a field numbering into the tens of thousands.

Sunday marked the first time Fiona Halls had tackled the marathon and she was also running in a Championship place having run sub 1hr 30mins in a half marathon in the last 12 months.

She celebrated a personal best and completed the course in 3hrs 18mins 44secs, making her the 259th woman over the finishing line.

Striders chairman Nigel Coates competed in his 15th London Marathon and once again ensured a place in next year’s race by running a strong 3hrs 5mins 9secs – some 10 minutes inside the cut off for a place in the age 50 to 54 category. He was the 74th man to finish in his age group.

Meanwhile Steve White powered home in 3hrs 14mins 43secs, demonstrating that the mountain races he regularly completes really do pay off when it comes to road races.

Tim Ellis achieved a commendable 3hrs 34mins 15secs in his sixth London Marathon despite having struggled with recent bouts of injury and illness, while Julia Hutchison achieved a life-long ambition of completing the course and, despite claiming not to be experienced with any sort of races, ran a very fast 3hrs 36mins 40secs.

Gemma Thake put the disappointment of her 2009 experience, when she sustained a bad injury during the race, well and truly behind her on Sunday by running a personal best 3hrs 42mins 18secs – an entire hour quicker than in 2009 and well inside her 4hr target. Her amazing performance was the pay off from months of hard training and she has secured a slot in next year’s race.

Carole Anastasi was just two minutes behind Gemma, finishing in an impressive 3hrs 44mins 54secs in her first ever marathon – some 15 minutes quicker than her target time.

Striders spokesman Richard Auty said: “As well as achieving some amazing times, the Striders also raised thousands of pounds for charity, with Fiona Halls, Gemma Thake, Julia Hutchison, Stuart Field, Carolyn Gamble and Kelly Lewis running for a variety of charities”.

Virgin London Marathon – times

Nigel Coates - 3:05:09

Fiona Tideswell - 3:12:44

Steve White - 3:14:43

Fiona Halls - 3:18:44

Tim Ellis - 3:34:15

Julia Hutchison - 3:36:40

Gemma Thake - 3:42:18

Carole Anastasi - 3:44:54

Rob Woodward – 3:57:05

Stuart Field - 4:12:00

Carolyn Gamble - 5:09:00

Kelly Lewis - 5:42:34