Five years ago the future of the club looked precarious but it is now thriving both on and off the track
After over 130 years of unforgettable memories and moments, the unthinkable looked plausible. “We were concerned we would lose Herne Hill Harriers”, says Keith Newton, who served as President of the club from 2019 to 2021.
In October 2019, Newton arrived at his desk to a large in-tray and immediately set his sights on updating the then 35-year-old eight-lane all-weather track.
With the normal lifespan of that type of track being 20 years, an upgrade was well overdue. The surface had been patched up but it desperately needed an overhaul.
Within months of Newton being elected President, the Tooting Bec Athletics Track – the historic home of Herne Hill Harriers – lost its competition license status.
“It looked absolutely disastrous and everything was compounded by the pandemic kicking off,” Newton states. “The funding streams had also dried up. At the time it was described as the ‘most significant thing’ in the club’s recent history.
“The surface had worn out a lot and there was little to no bounce left. Even for training there was very limited footwear that the governing body recommended wearing. There were risks of running in spikes, which obviously for sprinters is critical for training.”
As a result, a small task group was established with the main purpose of re-establishing Tooting Bec as a top facility in the heart of the community.
Keith Newton (Tim Adams)
Herne Hill Harriers was founded in 1889 after a group of boys in the area decided to set up an athletics club off the back of paper chases – a cross-country race in which the runners follow a trail marked by torn-up paper.
By 1908, the club had an Olympic champion in Joe Deakin, who won gold for Great Britain on home soil in the three miles team race.
Herne Hill Harriers moved to the Tooting Bec Athletics Track in 1937 and since then athletes in the club’s red and black hoops have trained and competed at the venue.
Those who were part of the club ran on a six-lane cinder track but in 1984 that was upgraded to the eight-lane all weather surface, securing the future of Herne Hill Harriers for a generation.
Fast forward to 2019 and the club needed a financial package from Wandsworth Council to guarantee its status in Tooting Bec for the foreseeable future.
Jade Johnson (Getty)
Within months of the news breaking out, athletes past and present came out publicly in support of Herne Hill Harriers.
Jade Johnson, 2002 European and Commonwealth long jump silver medallist, championed the club and said: “When I was 12-years-old my stepdad brought me down to the track. Herne Hill Harriers is home. It’s not just a track. It is part of the community.”
Katie Snowden, who grew up just a few miles from the track in Balham, stated that “without the track I wouldn’t have reached the level where I am now” and “it would be a real shame not to have the track fit for competition going forwards”.
Support also came from Westminster and Dr Rosena Allin-Khan, Tooting’s MP, said: “To lose such a valuable asset in our community would be a devastating blow to so many of our young people. Having this track will be useful for encouraging young people to be physically active and lead a healthy lifestyle.”
The fantastic Tooting Run Club have recently won the England Athletics Club of the Year award for London region, and are raising funds to help carry on their brilliant work in the community.
If you can help, donation details can be found here: https://t.co/LD9F74If2w
— Dr Rosena Allin-Khan (@DrRosena) October 4, 2024
The key stakeholder however was Wandsworth Council and Newton knew that getting support at it was crucial.
“Councillor Steffi Sutters [Community Services Spokesperson] was committed to working with us, with strong support from key opposition councillors including Councillor Judi Glasser,” Newton says. “England Athletics also provided excellent support. For anyone who is thinking about getting something like this done, getting the relevant parties on board is critical.
“What we did was lead the campaign from the focus group. At times it was a balance as we didn’t want to upset the local councillors too much but we had to keep it high profile. We were able to get Channel 4, BBC and other newspapers covering the situation.”
With all the publicity and support, Wandsworth Council, in December 2021, finally provided the £500,000 needed for upgrading the track and wider facilities at Tooting Bec. The club itself also contributed £30,000 to ensure the success of the bid.
All in all, upgrades included: Floodlit eight lane running track with sprint facilities; internal steeplechase runway; high jump fan inside the track; a javelin runway; shot put circle; double ended long jump/triple jump runway; double ended pole vault runway; hammer/discus cage; seating for 400 spectators pavilion with fitness studio; fully equipped gym and changing rooms.
Nick Griggs (Daniel Moses)
With a new track and impetus, Herne Hill Harriers decided that they should host a British Milers Club meet – sponsored by MarketAxess – in Tooting Bec.
Since the first event took place two years ago, some of the best domestic and international middle and long distance athletes have flocked to the venue and produced some simply incredible times.
“From the very first meet we had sub-four minute miles,” Newton adds. You know, Hobbs Kessler was there in the first year and ran both the 800m and mile. Since then it’s grown and grown.
“One event stands out. We have 15 out of the top 20 of the fastest ever men’s 1500m times in BMC history. They are the standards we’ve now set.”
Newton, who is now Meeting Organiser for the Tooting Bec BMC meets, cannot quite believe the journey the club has been on over the past few years.
“I have to pinch myself,” Newton adds. “The fact that highly regarded coaches around the country view it as the best middle-distance meet in the country is amazing. It’s also lovely to hear some real top internationals going away and saying that this is a fast track. It’s also great to see it’s got that reputation.
As well as the fast times at high profile meetings, Herne Hill Harriers has also created a community run club, targeting beginner and intermediate runners who would not tend to naturally join an athletics club. Tooting Run Club regularly attracts 250 participants to its Monday night sessions, more than 70% of whom are women, and has won England Athletics awards.
Lucy Jones (Graham Smith)
Making history on a national stage
One sign of Herne Hill Harriers’ progression is their recent victory at the English National Road Relays (October 8).
The club had never won the women’s event before but the quartet of Darcie Hey, Gabriel Reynolds, Georgie Grgec and Lucy Jones triumphed at Sutton Park in Birmingham.
The foursome clocked 58:12 and won by 24 seconds to Vale Royal AC, with the standout performance coming from Grgec, who recorded a time of 13:39 around the 4.3km looped course.
The New Zealander’s sensational run was the third fastest by a female athlete since the event moved to Sutton Park in 1990. Only Paula Radcliffe (13:26) – over a slightly longer 4.35km lap in 1993 – and Amelia Quirk (13:35) had gone quicker.
That meant that Jones had a sizeable lead on the final leg and it was more than enough to anchor Herne Hill Harriers to a famous win.
Jones, who competes and runs for the club alongside her full-time job in marketing, only moved down to London in September and has not looked back since joining Herne Hill Harriers.
Legends all in our @hrnhillharriers women’s A & B teams today at the National road relays in Sutton Coldfield. Building a club team squad – we strive for more improvement. Huge well done
pic.twitter.com/5lfyOPZPL2
— Herne Hill Harriers (@hrnhillharriers) October 5, 2024
“This time last year I wasn’t running at all,” Jones tells AW. “I really didn’t know if I was going to compete or carry on in the sport. After joining Herne Hill it’s been a complete u-turn and I’ve absolutely fallen back in love with it and I’m super happy with how things have worked out.
“It’s difficult to manage that balance when you’re working full-time but the coaches do a really good job so that’s as easy as possible. I feel like it also gives you a bit of flexibility and that there are other things.”
Jones has now had time to process anchoring Herne Hill Harriers to victory at the English National Road Relays, emphasising the team effort and that “three or four girls in our B team would’ve been in contention to be in that four”.
“We all pushed each other and everyone played such a big role,” Jones says. Darcie took out the first leg and she did a cracking job of getting into the mix to make sure we were in a great position.
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“Then Gabby did a really good job of taking a couple of places, before Georgie’s absolutely amazing run. It was so fast! I really didn’t expect to be handed a lead so when I saw her coming up the hill I was in a bit of shock. I was so happy then to take the win.
“It was absolutely brilliant to get that win for Herne Hill Harriers. It was just about giving something back to the coaches that have put so much work into it. Overall I’m thrilled.
“I don’t think it sunk in for a few hours and I think that the coaches were sort of letting on that they hadn’t fully processed it a day or two afterwards! I was just so chuffed.”
Moving forward, Jones, who recorded a personal best of 16:30 over 5km this season, wants to continue to hammer away at those times. She also made her marathon debut in London this year, clocking 2:52:54.
In the more immediate future, Jones has eyes on the cross-country season and is considering competing at the British Athletics Cross Challenge in Liverpool.
Jasmine Nkoso [C] (Glen Keegan)
Inspiring the next generation
One of the leading lights at Herne Hill Harriers is Jasmine Nkoso.
The junior multi-eventer had a stellar season and became England Athletics U15 girls pentathlon champion, triumphed over five events at the English Schools South East Regional Combined Events Championships and won the shot put at English Schools.
Her personal best in the pentathlon is 3442 points and she also broke the championships record in the shot put at English Schools, throwing a best of 13.84m to win by over a metre.
That distance also puts her sixth on the UK U15 shot put all-time list. No surprise then that it’s Nkoso’s favourite discipline.
“Shot put is definitely what I like the most,” says Nkoso. “I will definitely have to put 800m at the bottom because that’s a killer! I personally love the multi-events as it shows who’s best as an all-rounder, not just in a specific event.”
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Nkoso first started out in gymnastics but wanted to try out athletics. After her mum took her to Herne Hill Harriers, Nkoso fell in love with the club and the rest is history.
“I’ve been at this club for about two to three years and it’s in my heart because they’re the ones that found my love for what I do now,” the teenager adds. “To be honest I didn’t think I’d fall in love with it as much as I am now. I think it’s been so good and definitely the right decision to move to track and field.
“Who have I looked up to? My coaches are right up there as they’ve helped me mentally, physically and socially. I also went to watch the heptathlon at the Paris Olympics and that was both amazing and truly inspirational.
“I definitely want to be at that level when I’m older. My main goal right now is to go to the next European U18 Championships [Rieti 2026] and the longer-term ambition is the LA 2028 Olympics and beyond.”
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