Sandringham claims women’s title as Western Athletics prevails in men’s at Sandown Relays

The iconic Sandown Relays returned to the wide turns and long straights of Sandown Racecourse on Saturday, with overcast skies giving way to fine conditions by the afternoon’s close.

In the women’s 5×6.2km relay, Sandringham claimed victory with a consistent team performance, turning the tables on their rivals from Jells Park. Just over a minute separated the fastest and slowest legs for Sandringham, underlining the depth of the team. Their standout was Lilly Ellis, whose 22:09 was the only top-10 time from the squad and the eighth fastest overall.

Box Hill, the winners at Jells Park, had to settle for second place this time around, finishing 92 seconds behind Sandringham. Geelong Region rounded out the podium in third.

The day’s fastest women’s leg belonged to Box Hill’s Donve Viljoen, who blazed through the opening leg in 20:57, overtaking Ballarat’s Katherine Dowie (21:12) on the second lap.

In the men’s race, Western Athletics emerged triumphant, stopping the clock at 1:51:59 across six legs. Bendigo Region followed in 1:52:51, with Ballarat Region third in 1:53:22.

Glenhuntly’s Ed Marks delivered the fastest leg of the day, clocking 17:20 and pulling away from Australian marathon record holder Andy Buchanan, who recorded 17:35 for Bendigo. Olympic race walking relay medallist Rhydian Cowley (Glenhuntly) showed his versatility with an 18:21 split, the tenth fastest of the day.

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