JACKSONVILLE -  Former Fleming Island High track state gold medalist (800 relay) Graham Myers, who is now a steeplechase athlete at the University of Florida, took on the Run for the Pies 5k challenge race in downtown Jacksonville on June 7 with a second place finish in 15 minutes, 36 seconds.
Myers, and a front chase pack of male runners; eventual winner Seth Martinez, 22, a runner for University of North Florida; Samuel Freas, 17, a Buchholz High runner that was third in Class 4A 3200 meters, and Jonathan Hulzeboz, 29, attempted to chase down the womens front runners; who were given a one minute lead at the start, led by Lisa Hart, 35, a recent winner of the Walt Disney Half Marathon; Lauren Charlton, 25, an English runner running at University of Alabama Birmingham, and McKenna Coughlin, 31, who was 13th in 2015 in the SEC Championships 3000 meter steeplechase for Ole Miss, in the race's unique challenger format with the first runner across the finish line; male or female, getting an additional bonus on the race's prize purse.
In the four loop race staged by 1st Place Sports near James Weldon Park, Hart and Charlton held off Martinez and Myers for three of the four laps, but Martinez broke off the final turn to capture Hart and Charlton for the overall first place finish in 15:21. Myers was second in 15:36 with Frease third in 15:37.
Hart, the womens champion, was second overall behind Martinez with a 17:26 split with Charlton just four seconds behind.
Charlton, a standout English runner for Winthrop College and University of Alabama Birmingham and a sports nutritionist, arrived for the race with just a day's notice in returning to UAB from England.
Also in the race was another Fleming Island High alum, Luke Klingenberg, 24, who was 15th in 17:02.

On Saturday, June, 14, former Mandarin High and University of North Florida track and cross country standout Sem Sultanov took first prize by 11 seconds in the Big Chief Tire One Mile championship race held Saturday in the Shoppes of Murray Hill neighborhood in Jacksonville on Saturday. PRS Racing staged the race near the Fishweir Brewing Company in Murray Hills.

Sultanov, a frequent winner on the Jacksonville running circuit, had company for the first half of the race with Victor Farfan, 21, of St. Johns hanging off Sultanov's shoulder until the midway point.
Sultanov accelerated to finish in four minutes, 24 seconds with Farfan in at 4:35. Third place went to Johnelle Joe, 27, of Neptune Beach in 4:40.
For the women, first place went to Gainesville master's stalwart Betsy Suda, 43, who won by two seconds over Orange Park's Mei Chiang, 21, and a former Fleming Island High track and cross country standout, with Suda in at 5:35 and Chiang in at 5:37 with 12 year old Mckenzie McCollum third at 5:44.
Chiang, a 2022 Fleming Island High grad, had limited success at the high school level with nagging injuries hampering her performances though she did finish 33rd in the 2020 Class 4A cross country championships with a 20:08.80, spent her spring as an assistant coach to the Fleming Island High program with another alum, Lauren Schaudel.