James Westlake made his England Athletics debut in Sunday’s Toronto Marathon and it was a day to remember for the former Hassocks midfielder.
Despite suffering an injury hit preparation for the event, Westlake still managed to score a personal best time of 2:23:05.
That was enough to finish 20th in the race which was won by Kenya’s Benson Kipruto in 2:07:24.It also broke the long standing marathon record for Westlake’s athletics club, Crawley AC which was the 2:23:38 set by Dave Cowell at the 1974 Commonwealth Games.
“Today was one of the proudest moments for me and my family,” said Westlake afterwards. “To say that I have now represented my country and worn the England vest is a dream come true.”
“I’ve never been one to make excuses, but it’s been an extremely tough five weeks and being on the start line was a massive achievement in itself.”
“To finish, run that time and break the club record is a moment that I will never forget.”
“A massive thank you must go to my coach, Allison Benton and of course AB Training Group, without their support and guidance, I wouldn’t have been able to make today possible. To now say I’m an England International Athlete is beyond a dream come true.”
It has been quite the year for Westlake. In April, he was the seventh British finisher in the London Marathon with a time of 2:24:19 and in June he set a new course record for the Worthing 10k, winning in 00:30:31. Two weeks ago, he then won the Brighton 10 mile with a time of 51.17, another PB.
Westlake played his last game for Hassocks in March, finally giving up football to concentrate fully on athletics after 190 appearances and 28 goals for the Robins over two spells at the Beacon.
It looks like he might have made the right decision!
