Claire Elms runs the W60 3000m in 10:37.53 in South Wales and Joe Appiah sets the M55 60m hurdles record in Lee Valley in 8.39.
In a weekend of stunning world and British records, Claire Elms reclaimed the W60 W60 3000m world record at the British Masters in Cardiff on Saturday, a time faster than the men’s M60 winner. Steve Smith reports.
Coincidentally, Elms wasn’t the only Kent AC athlete to set a world record on Saturday as world champion Joe Appiah set a 60m hurdles record of 8.39 at the London Indoor Games in Lee Valley on his M55 debut.
There was also Andrew Ridley’s possible 800m world record in Cardiff.
Elms set a world record of 10:43.34 at the Irish Championships last March, before closing in on that mark by winning the world title in Florida.
That 10:43.34 was won by US Olympian and W55 World Masters champion Michelle Rolle in December just after she turned 60 and ran 10:41.68.
Later on Saturday, Rolle actually set a W60 mile record of 5:26.65 at the New Balance Boston meeting, where the world records for the 800m and 2000m were set just hours after her 3000m run at the Elms.
In Cardiff, Elms, now two years Rolle’s senior, was ten seconds slower than the American at the halfway point, running under caution due to undergoing a course of antibiotics for an infection.
However, feeling comfortable at 2km, she gradually picked up speed in each of the last five laps and was four seconds off the world record of 10:37.53, but feels she can go faster later in the season as this is her first indoor race of the year.
Her next race next week is over a mile at Lee Valley, a distance she holds an outdoor world mark of 5:18.97.
Irish visitor and W40 Rachel Murphy (10:24.87) won the race, but remarkably, 62-year-old Elms was the fastest of the British masters women’s entrants.
Kat Alp won W40 gold in 10:50.83 and Sarah Ellen was first W35 in PB 12:19.30.
Elms had to run in the W60 plus race to win a BMAF medal, but he spent some time in the W35 race, but the senior athletes’ race saw a battle between the two world record holders from 2025 onwards.
The race was won by outdoor mile record holder and European champion Anna Garnier (13:03.76) who won W70 gold easily ahead of multiple world and European champion Sarah Roberts (13:09.22) who won the W75 title.
Claire Elms reclaims her W60 3000m world record in Cardiff 10:37.53 👏 pic.twitter.com/Efeo6Xrc3b
— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) January 24, 2026
Other women’s titles were won by W45 Gillian Malone (11:32.44) and W50 Lucy Tate-Harris (11:54.81).
The men’s winner’s pick was former masters world champion and indoor world finalist James Tee, who took M45 gold in 9:24.94 ahead of M50 champion Brent Brodie (9:31.94).
Another Welsh success came in the M35-40 race with M40 Oliver Roberts (9:12.13) leading M35 Matthew Hughes (9:13.66).
Chris Nicoll took M55 gold in 9:55.65 ahead of M60 winner Phil York (10:42.92).
The individual M65 race was won by Paul Redway (10:58.10) while the oldest race, the M70 plus, was narrowly won by Dave Oxland (11:57.88) ahead of Dave Bedwell (11:57.99).
Further back Jeff Newton (16:06.85) won M80 gold on his debut.
A world record is possible in the 800m open race.
The listed M60 record is 2:09.11 by Scotland’s Rob McHarg, but British rival and reigning world outdoor champion Andrew Ridley ran 2:08.65 to finish third with M40 Oliver Williams winning in 2:04.09.
However, Ridley ran 2:08.53 in December and didn’t get that time, and it’s unclear if this latest mark will stand.
M45 Oliver Pool (23.83) was the fastest 200m runner on the day.
M50 Stephen McCauley came within a meter of the British record with a throw of 15.56m, while W55 Lesley Richardson won the women’s event with a throw of 8.49m.
Gold medalists in the oldest men’s age groups at the pentathlon championships included M60 Andrew Waddington (3033), M65 Brian Slaughter (3022) and M90 Tony Bowman.
W65 Susan Frisby won W65 gold with a world-class score of 3669, while other W55 plus competition winners were W55 Tamzin Gribble (3019), W70 Nikki Buckwell (2743) and W60 Christine Pates (2308).
Nia Rutter (3519) won W40 gold with 3519 points and Sally Gilding (2839) won the W45 title.
Wilford Floyd Wilkes (3198) won the M55 gold and Scott Whittle (3174) won the M50 title.
The top men’s score was Latvian M40 Kaspars Kazemaks (3521) and M40 Mark Beer (3396).
