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Kenny Wilson's potential to run a sub-two hour, 15 minute marathon and push for a Commonwealth Games place in Birmingham is backed by past Games heroes Fraser Clyne and Graham Laing


By Craig Christie

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TWO ex-Commonwealth Games marathon stars have backed Kenny Wilson’s bid to make the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in two years time.

Kenny Wilson hits the road, accompanied by coach George Sim on bike.
Kenny Wilson hits the road, accompanied by coach George Sim on bike.

The Craigellachie-based runner has been told by former Scotland internationals Fraser Clyne and Graham Laing that he is capable of running a two hours, 15 minutes marathon in the future.

Both Clyne and Laing ran for their country at past games, Laing (PB 2:13) finishing seventh in Brisbane 1982 while Clyne (PB 2:11) was tenth at Edinburgh in 1986.

Scotland plan to send three men to Birmingham in 2022 and two of those are likely to be the Hawkins brothers, Callum and Derek, who will run for Team GB for next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

“After those two, there’s a group of us in contention," said Wilson. "Robbie Simpson has run a 2:15 and another has done 2:19 and I think I might be the next one,” he said.

“If two top runners (Clyne and Laing) say they are confident I can go 2:15 at some point, that’s great to hear and I would love to prove them right.

“I’ve got their times written down at home as motivation to show that you that north guys can run that times as well.

“I would take anything under 2:20 just now but on a really good day you never know. The way training is going, I hope I can pull out a good time.”

Wilson plans to run an elite marathon in Wrexham on October 4 after just missing out on the cut for an elite version of the London Marathon on the same day.

He is part of the Scottish Athletics marathon project headed by the Hawkins brothers' father Robert, which aims to develop a series of up-and-coming marathon runners towards selection for Birmingham.



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