Published: Wednesday, 16th July, 2008 12:00
All roads lead to Alva for a record-breaking Games Day
By Nicola Findlay
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Three in a row for the British Championship Hill Race winner Alastair Dunn of Kendal
Pic by: Jan van der Merwe
THE 152nd Alva Games swung into action on Saturday as crowds gathered in Johnstone Park to cheer on an international field of competitors.
Runners, cyclists, dancers and the heavyweights entertained the vast crowd with the day culminating in the eagerly anticipated Hill Race, which saw three wins in a row for Alastair Dunn from Kendal.
The Alloa Bowmar Pipe Band marked the beginning of the Games, which were officially opened by Alva stalwart, Roy Ramage who was Clackmannanshire’s Citizen of the Year for 2007.
Roy has been attending the Games over the past six decades and has many fond memories of years gone by.
The former head teacher at Tillicoultry Primary told the Advertiser, “It was a great honour to be asked to open the Alva Games as I have had a long association with them over the years.
“I started running in the children’s races, sold programmes and was a runner with the results. It really is a great day for all the family and I am sure this year will be as successful as ever.”
Provost Derek Stewart also led the Alloa Bowmar Pipe Band into the arena and was delighted to see the continued support for the event.
“The Games are a vital part of community life here in Alva and in Clackmannanshire as a whole, and is something that should be cherished so we can keep it going for the next 100 years,” he said.
“I am delighted that the crowd numbers seem to be up and that once again there are competitors from all over the world, from as far afield as America, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.”
The international visitors to the Games included the Red Deer Region Highland Dancing Association from Alberta, Canada.
The group spent the last five years fundraising for the trip and said that the Alva Games certainly lived up to their expectations.
“It has been a wonderful experience for the dancers to travel to Scotland. For many of them it’s their first time and the Alva Games have been awesome,” said Maureen MacAskill from the association.
“Just to be here and dancing is the best experience and if any of the dancers win any medals it will be the icing on the cake,”she added.
This year saw a record number of competitors enter the Hill Race and last year’s winner Alastair Dunn wasn’t ready to give up the trophy just yet, completing the gruelling race in 20 minutes 22 seconds.
“I am absolutely delighted with three wins out of three,” Alastair told the Advertiser. “It’s a tough race both physically and mentally but the crowd and the atmosphere is what keeps you going.”
The first local competitor over the line was Will Hensman from Alloa, who ran the Hill Race for the first time.
“It was unbelievably hard and my legs were like jelly on the way down but you just have to keep pushing yourself on,” he said.
And there was also a late entry in the form of Ryan Martin, who serves on the Games organising committee.
“I decided 10 minutes before the race that I would enter after a couple of the other runners persuaded me to,” he said. “The Hill Race has always inspired me and I have always said I would do it, so this year I thought why not give it a go.”
He added, “It was incredibly tough and I was practically crawling on the way up but as soon as you hear someone shouting ‘come on’ it lifts you up again.”
The winner of the Open 800 Metres Handicap, which is sponsored by the Advertiser, was Matthew Turner from Campbelltown.
“This is the first time that I have competed in the Alva Games, so I am absolutely delighted with the win,” he said.
In the cycling competition Frank Norris from Glenrothes managed to win both the 800m and 1600m races but was unable to complete the hat-trick in the 3200m race, which was won by last year’s winner Neil Withington.
Games’ secretary Craig Dunbar said he was delighted with the success of this year’s games and the level of competition.
“It has been a perfect day and I think it has been the most enjoyable Games for me personally,” he said.
“Everything fell into place and the conditions were perfect. We had some fantastic races and a record entry for the Hill Race, which was fantastic.
“It was also good to see a lot more young athletes from Clackmannanshire take part, including the youth athlete of the Games, Scott Green from Dollar.”
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