STEVE DAWES retained his GIAAC 10k road race championship title with ease, winning last Sunday’s Imperial to Grandes Rocques race by over a minute-and-a-half in 35 minutes 17 seconds. Unsure as to whether to defend his trophy following a heavy week’s training in preparation for the forthcoming Easter Festival, Dawes took the first half of the race cautiously, happy to let Jeremy Poole and Paul Cherry dictate the pace.

However, allowing the race to be determined by a sprint finish, as had happened last year, was never on the agenda as the Island Games 5,000m finalist kicked for home as they rounded Perelle.

By now Tim Johns, last year’s runner-up in that sprint finish, had moved up into the top three as Cherry began to feel the effects of competing earlier in the morning in the Guernsey Velo Club 10-mile time trial.

With a mile to go and Dawes uncatchable, Johns made a determined bid to shake off his fellow triathlete on the Albecq incline, but to no avail. The effort of four tough races in 16 days, including his Church-to-Church victory, proved just too much as Poole went one better than last year to claim second, albeit by just four seconds, in 36.50.

A remarkable run from Tracey Dowinton saw her claim her first club championship outright as she finished sixth overall in the noteworthy time of 40.59. That was despite the strong head wind – and the fact that she too had ridden in the earlier Velo Club event.

In fact, the top three women all finished in the top half of the field, as Janette Shepherd placed second in 42.38 and Shanine Wray third, a little over a minute behind.

This weekend should see the island’s runners use tomorrow’s 5k event from the Vale Pond to Northside as a bit of a sharpener ahead of next week’s four-race Easter programme. Non-club members can enter on the day. The race starts at 10am.