Latest news with #JohnGribben
Irish Daily Mirror
09-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
He took up running 70 years ago - now 'sprinting monk' finally has gold medal
An elderly monk has shown off his gold medal for winning his first athletic championship at the age of 81 - after 70 years of trying. Dubbed the 'sprinting monk', Father John Gribben - inspired by the film Chariots of Fire - ran the 60m, 200m, and 400m sprint races in aid of poor children in Africa. He has now been pictured with gold medal he won in a 400 metre race - fulfilling an ambition that has spanned decades. Father John, originally from Belfast, first took up running 70 years ago in the 1950s. The pious pacer, said he almost collapsed at the time, but has flourished in the last ten years and now takes two buses every Saturday morning to attend a Parkrun event in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. He has also raised £6,000 (€7,100) for the Tariro charity, which helps young people in Zimbabwe. In February, Father John beat out the competition to take gold in the 80+ category at the British Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships at the Lee Valley Athletics Centre in London. He completed the race in two minutes, three seconds, 190 milliseconds. Despite the unexpected win, Father John says he doesn't believe there was any divine intervention behind his win, instead crediting it to his hard work and the support others have given him. He said: 'I'd hate to think that I was using something that gave me an advantage of the others other than my training and my strength. But, the encouragement that comes from my faith is a great help. There have been bad nights, or nights when I've had too much to eat, when I'm not in the mood for going out for a run. 'I just say to my saviour, 'if you go with me, I'll go running', and then I start to get my gear on and go out. As to being given an extra surge of energy or strength, I'm not sure that would be fair.' The sprightly monk continues to take two buses every Saturday to attend his local Parkrun before heading home to his Monastery – taking time to stop for a bacon butty first. As well as his gold in the 400 metres, Father John also achieved bronze in the 60 metres with a time of 13.16 seconds, and in the 200 metres with a time of 47.66 seconds. Father John joined the Community of the Resurrection in Mirfield, West Yorks., in 1979, after moving from Belfast. He discovered the monastery on a visit to Liverpool in 1966, while he was watching Brazil play in the World Cup, and was taken by its beauty he made the move 13 years later as there was a lack of Anglican churches in Ireland. He's since devoted his life to prayer, worship, and ministry. For the last 10 years, he's found solace in running and keeps fit by training six days a week, involving a mixture of running around the monastery, at his local Parkrun and hitting the gym. Click here to donate to Father John's fundraising efforts.
Scottish Sun
06-06-2025
- Sport
- Scottish Sun
Brit athletics champion, 81, is a MONK who took 70 YEARS to claim first gold after ‘nearly collapsing' on first run
SIGN OF THE CROSSFIT Brit athletics champion, 81, is a MONK who took 70 YEARS to claim first gold after 'nearly collapsing' on first run Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A MARATHON monk has become a British athletics champion after SEVENTY YEARS despite 'nearly collapsing' on his first run. Father John Gribben is a sprightly 81 years old and can now claim to be top of his field after winning a gold medal at the British Masters Indoor Track and Field Championships. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 A sprightly elderly monk has become a gold medal British athletics champion Credit: Guzelian 2 Father John Gribben, 81, is known as the 'sprinting monk' Credit: Guzelian Known as the 'sprinting monk' among parishioners, he won the 400 metre dash in two minutes, three seconds and 190 milliseconds. Gribben also secured bronze medals in the 60 metre and 200 metre events in London. But it took him 70 long years to finally achieve running stardom, with Gribben's first attempt at the sport coming in the 1950s. That didn't exactly go to plan, with octogenarian admitting he could barely stand up straight after a half-mile effort. READ MORE IN ATHLETICS HURD MENTALITY Fans stunned at how sprinter finished race after falling over final hurdle He told The Times: 'I nearly collapsed after that first run. I said, 'I'm not a runner', but I never stopped after it.' Gribben started to master the art of running when he moved to Mirfield, West Yorkshire, in 1979 — where he remains to this day. And like any good athlete, Gribben dedicates himself to a gruelling mid-week training schedule. He explained: 'Three nights at least of a 5km run, most days I'll do a 60 metre sprint, and then the other things are an hour at the local gym a couple of days a week.' The Belfast native, who attended a theological college in Dublin, mainly gets his racing kicks at Greenhead Park's Parkrun in Huddersfield. He's since completed over 250 events, boasting an impressive 5km Personal Best of 26 minutes. I'm a parkrun fanatic - here are my top 10 tips for first-timers as the event turns 20 Gribben, who takes TWO buses to reach the course, started attending when he was nearly 70 years old. He now runs 5km in around 40 minutes, and those Saturday morning slogs finally paid dividends when he clinched gold at the Masters. Gribben also revealed the spiritual kick he gets from running, adding: 'There's something in the spring, you hit one point where it is ecstasy, you're outside yourself almost, when you hit that speed that carries you the last whatever you need to get to the line. 'Sometimes I just say to my saviour, 'Well I'll run if you run with me'. 'I don't know that I get an answer but… I start putting on my trainers and it feels good to do.'
The Sun
06-06-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Brit athletics champion, 81, is a MONK who took 70 YEARS to claim first gold after ‘nearly collapsing' on first run
A MARATHON monk has become a British athletics champion after SEVENTY YEARS despite 'nearly collapsing' on his first run. Father John Gribben is a sprightly 81 years old and can now claim to be top of his field after winning a gold medal at the British Masters Indoor Track and Field Championships. 2 2 Known as the 'sprinting monk' among parishioners, he won the 400 metre dash in two minutes, three seconds and 190 milliseconds. Gribben also secured bronze medals in the 60 metre and 200 metre events in London. But it took him 70 long years to finally achieve running stardom, with Gribben's first attempt at the sport coming in the 1950s. That didn't exactly go to plan, with octogenarian admitting he could barely stand up straight after a half-mile effort. He told The Times: 'I nearly collapsed after that first run. I said, 'I'm not a runner', but I never stopped after it.' Gribben started to master the art of running when he moved to Mirfield, West Yorkshire, in 1979 — where he remains to this day. And like any good athlete, Gribben dedicates himself to a gruelling mid-week training schedule. He explained: 'Three nights at least of a 5km run, most days I'll do a 60 metre sprint, and then the other things are an hour at the local gym a couple of days a week.' The Belfast native, who attended a theological college in Dublin, mainly gets his racing kicks at Greenhead Park's Parkrun in Huddersfield. He's since completed over 250 events, boasting an impressive 5km Personal Best of 26 minutes. I'm a parkrun fanatic - here are my top 10 tips for first-timers as the event turns 20 Gribben, who takes TWO buses to reach the course, started attending when he was nearly 70 years old. He now runs 5km in around 40 minutes, and those Saturday morning slogs finally paid dividends when he clinched gold at the Masters. Gribben also revealed the spiritual kick he gets from running, adding: 'There's something in the spring, you hit one point where it is ecstasy, you're outside yourself almost, when you hit that speed that carries you the last whatever you need to get to the line. 'Sometimes I just say to my saviour, 'Well I'll run if you run with me'. 'I don't know that I get an answer but… I start putting on my trainers and it feels good to do.'
