Armagh 5km 2010 – Thursday 25^th February 2010

 Although slightly below distance for me, a 5km on the road is a good indication of form and after a slightly disappointing 51min 17seconds to finish second in the recent Sidcup 10 mile race I was looking for a confidence boost before the start of the 2010 Duathlon season.

 Armagh in Ireland is host to possibly the highest quality 5km in the UK, with athletes from South Africa, America, Finland, Poland, England and Irelands best distance runners taking part. The venue is exceptional and 5 laps of a 1km oval in the centre of the town allow for large crowds to support the athletes in the international event that is held after hundreds of local children have taken part in shorter races.

 After a day relaxing in the athlete’s hotel, I warmed up and stood on the start line surrounded by quality athletes. I knew I would have to commit to a pace that I rarely train at now the majority of my races last nearly 2hours, but the conditions were good and my legs felt fresh after a rare rest day on Tuesday.

 The gun went and a first km split of 2.52 saw me well down the field, 2km in 5.46 and 3km in 8.45 suggested I was on for a good run as I slowly picked off runners who had started too quick. I hit 4km in 11.47 and managed a sub 3 min last km to finish in 14.46. This is the second quickest road 5km I’ve run, and although substantially slower than I’ve run on the track in the summer it is solid for a February race, when I’m not blessed with natural speed.

In a strong international field I finished 31^st – although I sure I beat the athlete in 30^th, finishing 10^th English athlete home.  It’s a result I think I can move forward from and shows I have plenty of speed of for a Duathlon race. 

 I now have 10 more days until the Bath Half Marathon, before my focus switches to the bike and the upcoming Duathlon season.