Jill Clarke Harrison

{{short description|English long-distance runner}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}} {{Use British English|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox sportsperson | headercolor = | name = Jill Harrison <br />née Clarke | image = | image_size =  | caption = | nationality = British (English) | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1958|06|20|df=yes}} | birth_place = Derbyshire, England | death_date = | death_place = | sport = Athletics | event = long distance | height = | weight = | club = Sheffield AC | pb = }} '''Jill Harrison''' (née '''Clarke'''; born 20 June 1958) is an English long-distance runner. She is the 1980 World University Cross Country Champion. At the age of 55 in 2013, she won the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres at the World Masters Athletics Championships.

== Biography == Clarke grew up in a small village in Derbyshire. She didn't discover running until encouraged in a PE lesson to train for the Sheffield schools championships. This lead her to run for Britain at the age of 19. By this time she had already been 2nd in the English Schools. She studied at the Birmingham and Loughborough Universities and turned down a scholarship to an American University.{{citation needed|date=March 2025}} She became World Student Champion in cross country in 1998.{{citation needed|date=March 2025}}

Clarke finished third behind Zola Budd in the 5,000 metres event at the 1985 WAAA Championships,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0004941/19850728/615/0031 |title=Athletics |work=Sunday Express |date=28 July 1985 |via=British Newspaper Archive |url-access=subscription |access-date=20 March 2025}}</ref> before she became British 10,000 metres champion after winning the British WAAA Championships title at the 1986 WAAA Championships.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nuts.org.uk/Champs/AAA/index.htm |title=AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists |website=National Union of Track Statisticians |access-date=20 March 2025}}</ref>

Clarke represented England, competing in the 10,000 metres at the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotland, but dropped out due to injury.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://teamengland.org/commonwealth-games-history/edinburgh-1986/athletes|title=1986 Athletes|website=Team England}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://thecgf.com/results/games/3041/19/all|title=England team in 1986|website=Commonwealth Games Federation|access-date=5 October 2019|archive-date=19 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419153600/https://thecgf.com/results/games/3041/19/all|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://thecgf.com/results/athletes/39858|title=Athletes and results|website=Commonwealth Games Federation}}{{Dead link|date=February 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref> At the 1987 WAAA Championships Clarke finished second behind Sue Crehan in the 10,000 metres event.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gbrathletics.com/bc/waaa.htm |title=AAA Championships (women) |website=GBR Athletics |access-date=20 March 2025 }}</ref>

She ran 2:34:19 to finish 14th at the 1989 London Marathon and after marrying the same year competed under her married name thereafter. Coaches have included George Gandy, Brian Scoby and Frank Horwill. Training partners have included 1989 London Marathon winner Veronique Marot, 1984 Olympic silver medallist Wendy Sly, and Angie Pain. She won at the 2013 World Masters Championships, running 19:29 in the 5000m and 42:25 in the 10,000m.{{citation needed|date=March 2025}}

Harrison now lives in the West Country with her husband and two children.{{citation needed|date=March 2025}}

==Personal bests== <small>'''All-time rankings as of June 2017'''</small> *5000 metres - 15:34.16 in 1985 (45th on UK all-time list) *10 km (road) - 32:41 in 1987 (36th on UK all-time list) *Half-marathon - 71:44 in 1987 (26th on UK all-time list) *Marathon - 2:34:19 in 1989 (46th on UK-all-time list)

==Events== *World University Cross Country Championships Women (individual) Gold Medal Jill Clarke/Harrison 1980 <ref>[http://www.gbrathletics.com/bm/xc.htm GBR Athletics]</ref> *Vulcan Run-1987 November 3 place Jill Clarke/Harrison in 33´32´´ <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://vulcanrun.com/history/yearly-highlights |title=Vulcan Run |access-date=6 May 2008 |archive-date=12 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200312221847/http://www.birminghamtrackclub.com/vulcan-run-10k.php/history/yearly-highlights |url-status=dead }}</ref> *10,000 meters 33´27´´ 1st place Hull 22-jun-1986 *10 kilometers (road) 32´41´´ 4th place Orlando, Florida USA 21-feb-1987 *15 kilometers (road) 50´27´´ 2nd place Jacksonville, Florida USA 14-mar-1987 *10 miles (road) 54´27´´ 4th place Washington DC. USA 2-abril-1989 *Half marathon 1º11´44´´ 1st place Fleet 29-mar-1987 *25 kilometers (road) 1º30´33´´ 2nd place Glasgow 30-sep-1990 *Marathon 2º34´19´´ 14th place London Marathon 23-April-1989 toda esta información está en (http://www.gbrathletics.com/uk/wc99.htm)

== References == {{Reflist}}

==External links== *{{ARRS name|5421}} *{{Power of 10 name|40923}} *[http://www.gbrathletics.com/uk/windex.pdf gbrathletics]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Jill Clarke}} Category:1958 births Category:Living people Category:Athletes from Sheffield Category:English women long-distance runners Category:British women long-distance runners Category:Alumni of the University of Birmingham Category:Alumni of Loughborough University Category:20th-century English sportswomen