Men’s and women’s champions Tonbridge and Leeds City teams return to defend their ERRA National Road Relays crowns at Sutton Park on Saturday (April 6).

Last year close to Birmingham, Leeds City stormed to another women’s title and Tonbridge’s men won the club’s first crown.

The fastest legs of the day were clocked by Thames Valley’s Tracy Barlow and Kent AC’s Alex Yee, while Cambridge & Coleridge’s pair Julia Paternain and Kieran Wood ran the fastest short legs.

Going into Saturday’s women’s race, the strong Leeds City team can expect to face a tough test to retain their crown against Northern champions Rotherham Harriers, Southern champions Herne Hill Harriers, and the dominating Birchfield Harriers, who won the Midlands title by more than 10 minutes.

Hayley Carruthers ran the fastest long leg that day in the Midlands, while fastest long legs at the other English regionals were run by Blackburn’s Jess Judd and Thames Valley’s Barlow.

Photo: Stephen Lee

RELATED: No goal too big for high flying Hayley Carruthers

Herne Hill’s Katie Snowden, Birchfield Harriers Bryony Gunn and Liverpool’s Tiffany Penfold posted the quickest short legs at the recent regional championships.

In the men’s contest, Leeds City looks to be the team to beat after a superb win at the Northern Championships.

BUCS cross country champion Emile Cairess ran the fastest long stage at Birkenhead Park, while clubmate Philip Sesemann clocked the quickest short leg.

At the South of England Championships, Aldershot won the men’s team title with Joe Morwood putting the club in front on the penultimate stage after running the fifth fastest long leg of the day.

Belgrave Harriers’ Nick Goolab was the quickest on the South of England long legs, while Aldershot’s Ricky Harvie posted the fastest short leg.

Two weeks ago in the Midlands, Birchfield fought hard with Bristol & West, helped Elliot Giles and Omar Ahmed, who ran the two fastest short legs of the day.

However, it was Bristol & West who triumphed at Sutton Park, only once dropping out of the top three teams during the event. Notts AC ‘won’ eight of the 12 stages in the Midlands and secured team bronze, while the club’s Doug Musson ran the fastest leg of the day.

Defending champions Tonbridge have Maximilian Nicholls and Kieran Reilly among their declared athletes for Saturday, and will aim to show their class once again on the national stage after a sixth-place finish at the South of England Championships. South of England cross country champion Henry Pearce is also set to start.

Photo: Stephen Lee

RELATED: Bouncing back from a debut DNF to running a 2:19 marathon

The Scottish and Welsh clubs will also be on the start line and 2017’s overall winners Swansea Harriers will have Dewi Griffiths among their ranks.

Swansea’s Kris Jones ran the second fastest long leg last year, however, the club will have to manage without his services on Saturday.

Jones, who is sharing his running journey this year on Fast Running, is not in the team after Achilles issues in recent months.

RELATED: ‘Human errors’ cause uproar at English road relays

Timetable

11.00: Young Athletes 5k – Under-17 men
11.05: Young Athletes 5k – Under-17 women
11.15: Young Athletes 5k – Under-15 boys
11.20: Young Athletes 5k – Under-15 boys
12.00: Men’s 12-stage road relay
12.20: Women’s 6-stage road Relay

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More than 550 athletes among 67 teams will descend on Aarhus, Denmark for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships on Saturday (March 30).

Among those set to compete are defending senior men’s champion Geoffrey Kamworor of Kenya and world under-20 cross country champion Jacob Kiplimo.

The latter became Uganda’s first ever world cross country gold medallist two years ago in Kampala and will be joined by compatriot Joshua Cheptegei in the quest to deny Kamworor a third straight gold.

Photo: Getty Images for IAAF

The senior women’s race features world 5000m champion Hellen Obiri, Kenyan compatriot Beatrice Chepkoech – the steeplechase world record-holder – and two-time world U20 cross country champion Letesenbet Gidey of Ethiopia.

Three-time European cross country under-20 gold medalist Jakob Ingebrigtsen will aim to become the first under-20 men’s champion from the continent in over 30 years, however, it has been 25 years since a European runner even finished in the top 10.

The European 1500m and 5000m senior champion will face Kenyan under-20 champion Samuel Chebolei and world under-18 steeplechase gold medalist Leonard Bett.

In the under-20 women’s race, world under-20 5000m champion Beatrice Chebet of Kenya, Uganda’s Sarah Chelangat, and Girmawit Gebrzihair of Ethiopia are among the favourites.

There is also the mixed relay event, where Kenya will aim to defend their title against strong Moroccan, Ethiopian and Ugandan teams.

A full preview of the senior men’s race, including a look at the British and Irish runners competing, can be found here, while additional previews will be published on Fast Running shortly.

How to watch

Fans in the UK can watch the cross country showpiece unfold at the Moesgaard Museum on the BBC Red Button, Connected TV and the BBC Sport website.

Live coverage begins at 09:45 and will conclude at 14:00.

In Ireland, there will be no live TV coverage, but cross country fans need not worry as the action will be streamed live on the IAAF’s YouTube channel.

Elsewhere around the world, NBC will be covering the action in the USA, Kenyan fans can watch on Citizen TV, while supporters in Denmark who don’t make it to Aarhus can watch the cross country racing on TV2. Additional global broadcaster information can be found here.

Timetable

Local time / UK time
11:00 / 10:00: Mixed relay – 8km (combined)
11:35 / 10:35: Under-20 women’s race – 6km
12:10 / 11:10: Under-20 men’s race – 8km
13:00 / 12:00: Senior women’s race – 10km
14:00 / 13:00: Senior men’s race – 10km

RELATED: Geoffrey Kamworor eyes world cross country hat trick

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Mo Farah and Charlotte Purdue took the victories at The Vitality Big Half on a bright but windswept morning in London on Sunday (March 10).

Starting by Tower Bridge, with The Shard in the backdrop, the race got underway with Farah, Wilson Kipsang, Bashir Abdi and Daniel Wanjiru straight to the forefront, with Dewi Griffith soon joining the lead pack in the men’s race.

Photo: The Vitality Big Half

Following a first mile split of 4:25, the leading group of five stretched out as they came out of Limehouse tunnel and it was soon down to a group of three, featuring European marathon record holder Farah, Belgium’s Abdi and Kenya’s Wanjiru.

By mile five, Farah found himself five to 10 metres off his challengers but soon closed the gap and at mile seven as the trio came through in 32:50 before clocking 37:35 at mile eight.

Farah, who returned to the UK from training in Ethiopia on Thursday, was now right where he wanted to be, sitting on the shoulder of his rivals, and ready to produce his trademark kick.

With the finish line in sight at the iconic Cutty Sark, Farah duly unleashed his kick in a sprint finish to successfully retain his Big Half and British half marathon crown in 61:15.

Farah’s training partner Abdi crossed the finish line for second in 61:16 ahead of former London Marathon champion Wanjiru in 61:17.

Crossing the finish line in fourth place for British silver was Welshman Griffiths in a time of 63:17.

Photo: The Vitality Big Half

Chris Thompson finished fifth in a time of 63:41 for British bronze ahead of two-time London Marathon champion Kipsang in 64:07.

After the race, Farah said: “The conditions weren’t great today so I’m pleased to win, although it would have been nice to run a bit faster and really test myself. I’m happy with the win and with how my preparations are going ahead of the London Marathon in April.

“I got a bit of stomach cramp at one point but it cleared up. It’s always great to race in London. I love racing on the streets of London; the crowds are amazing. I’m going to spend the next few days with my family then I head back to Ethiopia to continue training.

“The London Marathon is still quite a long way away but I’m happy with my progress and it was nice to be able to race today.”

Purdue storms to British half marathon gold

Photo: The Vitality Big Half

In the women’s race, it was no surprise to see the British quartet of Charlotte Purdue, Lilly Partridge, Charlotte Arter and Steph Twell leading the charge from the off, with Hayley Carruthers on their shoulder.

As the race progressed, Twell, Arter and Purdue had a slight lead during the first couple of miles, before the gap between the trio started to stretch out between mile five and six, with only Twell maintaining the pace nestled within a group of British male club runners.

Purdue, who was the winner of the inaugural Big Half 12 month ago, was now running alone in second with Arter finding herself in a similar position in third place.

Twell, who completed a special double last month after adding the Scottish cross country crown to the English title she won in 2010, had a sizeable lead during the early stages of the second half of the women’s event.

However, Purdue patiently worked her way back into contention before taking charge of the race with a few miles to go.

Purdue, fresh from half marathon PB of 69:46 in Japan, aggressively kept her foot on the accelerator and showed no signs of slowing down as she opened up a gap of 20 or 30 metres on her Aldershot clubmate Twell with a mile to go.

As the race approached the finish line Purdue had a commanding lead and took the win in 70:38 almost a minute ahead of Twell, looking in superb form ahead of next month’s London Marathon.

Photo: The Vitality Big Half

With Purdue successfully defending her Big Half and British half marathon titles, Twell took British silver in a personal best time of 71:33 ahead of Welsh record holder Arter in 71:44.

Continuing to make a mark after her late start to competitive running was Carruthers in fourth place, running a big PB of 71:57 ahead of Partridge in fifth.

Following two impressive half marathon performances in recent months, Purdue has shown that her training set-up in Australia with a strong group – that includes 2:25 marathoner Sinead Diver – is paying dividends.

Photo: The Vitality Big Half

“It’s brilliant to get the win,” said Purdue afterwards. “The weather was really windy so I knew it wasn’t going to be a really quick day.

“Some of the athletes went off really quick, but I knew they’d come back to me because the conditions didn’t indicate really fast times – so I followed my own race plan, and it paid off.

“It’s great to retain my title. I won here last year, and to win again is really good.”

In the Wheelchair races, there were victories for GB’s David Weir and Dutch athlete Margriet Van Den Broek.

The top men’s and women’s results are below.

Top 20 men’s results
1) Mo Farah 61:15
2) Bashir Abdi 61:16
3) Daniel Wanjiru 61:17
4) Dewi Griffiths 63:17
5) Chris Thompson 63:41
6) Wilson Kipsang 64:07
7) Jonny Mellor 64:31
8) Mustafa Mohamed 64:42
9) Mick Clohisey 64:58
10) Jack Gray 65:01
11) Josh Griffiths 65:36
12) Joe Morwood 66:15
13) Paul Navesey 66:17
14) Malcolm Hicks 66:36
15) Ben Johnson 66:52
16) Ben Cole 66:53
17) Alex Bampton 67:25
18) Ross Skelton 67:37
19) Maximilian Nicholls 67:47
20) Andy Vernon 67:51

Top 20 women’s results
1) Charlotte Purdue 70:38
2) Steph Twell 71:33
3) Charlotte Arter 71:44
4) Hayley Carruthers 71:57
5) Lily Partridge 72:09
6) Clara Evans 73:13
7) Sonia Samuels 73:46
8) Helen Davies 73:56
9) Breege Connolly 74:59
10) Fiona Brian 75:01
11) Tamara Armoush 75:01
12) Tracy Barlow 75:21
13) Tamara Beach 75:25
14) Dani Nimmock 76:05
15) Melanie Wilkins 76:28
16) Hayley Munn 279 78:14
17) Alaw Beynon-Thomas 80:12
18) Kelly Crickmore 80:35
19) Molly Renfer 80:51
20) Megan Zoe Wilson 81:00

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Britain’s top cross country runners will race at Loughborough’s Prestwold Hall on Saturday (March 9), with many eyeing a spot on the GB team for the World Cross Country Championships later this month.

Making the team for the biannual global championships will be the main goal. However, there are also Inter-Counties and overall British Athletics Cross Challenge titles to be decided.

The race distance was equalled to 10km for senior men and women at the last World Cross Country Championships, and this weekend, both men and women will run the same distance for the first time at the Inter-Counties ahead of the Aarhus hosted event.

Mahamed Mahamed, who is the defending Inter-Counties champion, delivered a golden performance at the English National two weeks ago to add the senior men’s national crown to the under-20 title he won a year ago.

Photo: Andy Peat

The Southampton athlete will aim to secure his spot on the plane to Aarhus this weekend and among the top names he’ll face are Marc Scott, Ross Millington and possibly Charlie Hulson.

All three competed for GB at December’s European Cross Country Championships, with US-based Scott the first British finisher in ninth place.

Millington will also fancy his chances on Saturday after winning the Euro Trials in Liverpool, while Hulson won the first Cross Challenge fixture in Cardiff last October.

Another athlete who will be right in the mix is Sam Stabler – a runner-up in Loughborough 12 months ago. Stabler returned to action in January after injury setbacks to take maximum Cross Challenge points at the Nothern Ireland International Cross Country.

Other leading entries in the senior men’s race include Scottish National Cross Country champion Adam Craig, who has been in excellent form, Andrew Heyes, Adam Hickey, Alex Teuten, Midlands champion Jack Gray, John Millar and Patrick Dever.

Kate Avery and recently crowned English National champion Emily Hosker-Thornhill head the entries in the senior women’s race.

Avery has been the most consistent performer this season across the Cross Challenge series following strong performances in all four events, including the top prizes in Milton Keynes and Cardiff.

Denmark’s Anna Moller, who is ineligible in the Cross Challenge, was the sole athlete ahead of Avery in Cardiff, with Hosker-Thornhill next across the finish line.

Prior to her superb win at the English National, Aldershot’s Hosker-Thornhill was the first British finisher at the Northern Ireland International Cross Country.

Photo: Pete Brown

British Euro cross representatives Jess Piasecki and Verity Ockenden will also be in contention, while fellow team silver medalist in Tilburg, Pippa Woolven, is set to miss out due to illness.

Piasecki finished second and third at Milton Keynes and Liverpool during the Cross Challenge series, while Ockenden also starred in Liverpool taking the runner-up spot.

Other runners hoping to be in the mix include Jess Judd, Mhairi Maclennan, Welsh cross country champion Jenny Nesbitt, Louise Small and Naomi Taschimowitz.

Also among the leading entries are four of the top six placed athletes at Prestwold Hall last year; Gemma Steel, Abbie Donnelly, Claire Duck and Amy Griffiths.

Ahead of Saturday, Mahamed and Hulson share the top spot in the senior men’s Cross Challenge series, while Avery heads the women’s standing.

After some confusion about the number of senior athletes going to the World Cross Country Championships, British Athletics clarified its intentions to send full teams, up to six per team, with the top two in each senior race guaranteed selection.

Meanwhile, in the junior races, the top three finishers gain automatic qualification for Aarhus.

After winning the English National under-20 crown Rory Leonard is the standout entry in the men’s race. Among those joining him on Saturday are Zak Mahamed, Matt Willis, Jack Meijer and Benjamin West.

In the junior women’s race, Grace Brock is a strong favourite after an impressive cross country season that included silver at the English National a fortnight ago.

The Cornwall athlete currently leads the Cross Challenge standings and her challengers this weekend include Amelia Samuels, Becky Briggs, Grace Copeland, Eloise Walker and Naomi Lang.

The men’s under-20 event at 11.00am is the first race of the day, with the action in Loughborough concluding with the senior men’s race at 2:45pm.

Event timetable

11.00am: Under-20 men – 8km
11.30am: Under-13 boys – 3km
11.45am: Senior women – 10km
12.35pm: Under-15 boys – 4km
12.55pm: Under-17 women – 5km
1.15pm: Under-20 women – 6km
1.40pm: Under-13 girls – 3km
2.00pm: Under-17 men – 6km
2.20pm: Under-15 girls – 4km
2.45pm: Senior men – 10km

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Over 530 runners are entered for the Northern Ireland and Ulster Senior Cross Country Championships at Lurgan Park on Saturday (February 23).

Reigning champion Declan Reed is among those returning to Northern Ireland’s largest urban park and once again he’ll face the in-form Mark McKinstry.

McKinstry has had a fantastic few months on the country, including winning the V35 title at the British & Irish Masters’ International Cross Country Championships in January.

The North Belfast Harrier finished ahead of City of Derry’s Reed at the Irish Masters Cross Country in February, with McKinstry taking the V35 crown and Reed claiming the V45 title, and this weekend will hope to finally win his first NI and Ulster senior gold after multiple silvers.

McKinstry has also shown great improvement on the roads and most recently ran a big personal best 14:39 at the Armagh 5k to go sub 15-minutes for the first time.

Newcastle’s Zak Hanna, who won the Irish Novice title at the end of 2018, will be among the challengers at the front of the race, along with clubmate Seamus Lynch and Foyle Valley’s Chris McGuiness.

North Belfast’s Conal McCambridge, Philip Goss, Eamon White and John Black will also hope to feature highly in the field, while North Down AC’s Craig McMeechan and Ryan Holt of Willowfield Harriers are also entered for the 12km race.

City of Derry go for a third consecutive team gold but expect a strong challenge from a strong North Belfast Harriers team.

RELATED: Mark McKinstry believes in keeping a healthy perspective in running

Breege Connolly will start as favourite in the senior women’s 6km race, with 2017 champion Jessica Craig and North Down clubmate Rachel Gibson also in the hunt for NI and Ulster honours.

Photo: Athletics NI

Emma Mitchell was named among the entries but is not racing in Lurgan on Saturday, with her focus firmly on preparations a 26.2 mile debut the London Marathon in April.

City of Derry’s Connolly, who represented Ireland in the marathon at the 2016 Rio Olympics, is in rich form and most recently ran a 3k road PB in Armagh, after a five mile best to finish third at the Raheny 5 Mile Road Race.

Connolly was also the first Northern Irish finisher at the last month’s IAAF Northern Ireland International Cross Country. The 41 year-old last competed at the NI and Ulster Championships in 2015, finishing runner-up to Teresa Doherty.

Meanwhile, former winner Craig won bronze last year and will be at the forefront once again.

Gibson has claimed silver for the last two years and after 3000m and 3k bests this month will hope to transfer the speed into country gold.

Beechmount Harriers’ duo Catherine Diver and Sarah Lavery should also be in the mix.

With Katie Moore and Sarah Grant, who won the Stormont Cross Country this month, also among the North Down entries, another team gold will likely go to the strong Bangor club.

The senior women’s 6km race starts at 1.30pm followed by the senior men’s 12km event at 2.15pm.

Meanwhile, national cross country championships also take place in England, Scotland and Wales this weekend. A preview of the English action at Harewood House can be found here, Scottish preview here and the Welsh preview can be found here.

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A host of England’s top cross country runners descend on Harewood House Estate near Leeds in West Yorkshire on Saturday (February 23) for the Saucony English National Championships.

The venue hosted the Northern Championships last year and the large sparse area will mean only two laps are needed for the senior men’s 12km race.

This year’s championships is the 131st edition of the senior men’s event, while the senior women race the for the 86th time, with 8027 runners entered across the 10 races.

The figure is down on last year’s record figure of 9565 at Parliament Hill, but it’s the second highest figure for a Northern venue since 2000, and just 63 down on the number that entered the Roundhay Park, Leeds event in 2010.

Defending champion Adam Hickey is among the entries in the senior men’s race, along with area champions Emile Cairess, Henry Pearce and Jack Gray.

Pearce got the better of Southend’s Hickey at this year’s South of England Championships, and will be in contention for a first national medal, while his club Tonbridge, will have hopes of Pearce leading them to back-to-back team golds.

Photo: Nigel Bramley

Cairess is in superb form and followed up his victory at the Northern Championships with gold at the BUCS cross country in a close photo finish.

Joining the Leeds City youngster from the North of England is second and third at Pontefract Park, Morpeth’s Carl Avery and Liverpool’s Dejene Gezimu.

The Midlands’ podium three are all expected to race, with Cambridge and Coleridge’s Gray joined by Birchfield Harriers’ Omar Ahmed and Coventry Godiva’s Mohamed Daud Mohamed.

Former champion Jonny Hay is also among the entries, along with Belgrave Harriers’ Nick Goolab, Southampton’s Alex Tueten, Stockport Harriers’ Jack Morris and Sale Harriers’ Nigel Martin, while Leeds City boasts a strong team with Cairess, Graham Rush, Philip Sesemann and Ollie Lockley among their ranks.

In the senior women’s race, defending champion Phoebe Law is named among the entries, but hasn’t raced since October’s Cardiff Cross Challenge, and is not expected to race.

South of England champion Pippa Woolven will have hopes of adding another cross country gold to her collection this weekend. Also expected to challenge for medals is Southern runner-up, City of Norwich’s Iona Lake, who won national bronze last year.

Photo: Nigel Bramley

City of Stoke’s Kate Holt is another area champion set to race, with Bournville Harriers’ Nicola Sykes and Bristol and West’s Charlotte Taylor-Green joining her from the Midlands’ podium on Saturday.

2017 national champion Jess Judd finished third at the Northern Championships and will aim to transfer the speed she demonstrated on the Armagh roads last week onto the country.

Photo: Pete Brown

Alex Bell, who is sharing her journey this year on Fast Running, finished fourth at Pontefract Park and joins the Blackburn runner on Saturday, while Aldershot’s Louise Small will hope third time’s a charm after taking silver for the last two years.

Small has just returned from Utah where she spent time learning to cross country ski, and the alternative aerobic training could turn out to be the secret to gold.

Aldershot club mates Emily Hosker Thornhill and Emelia Gorecka are also among the big name entries, along with Charnwood’s Gemma Steel. Hopefully, all three are on the start line at 1.35pm on Saturday.

Kendal’s Sarah Tunstall will take a break from the mountains to compete at Harewood House, while Leeds City and Tonbridge are well represented with top athletes Claire Duck, Emma Clayton, Lucy Crookes, Nicole Taylor, Elle Baker and Lucy Reid named in their teams.

With four athletes to score for the team honours, both clubs will fancy their chances, but defending gold medalists Sale Harriers along with South of England champions Thames Hare and Hounds, Aldershot and Cambridge and Coleridge can be expected to be in the mix.

Junior Championships

Ben Dijkstra, who finished runner-up two years ago in Nottingham, is a leading contender after his Midlands win over Thomas Mortimer.

Stroud and District’s Mortimer took under-20 men’s bronze in 2018 and will also have his eyes on the top prize, while Lachlan Wellington steps up from the under-17 ranks after silver last year.

Northern champion Rory Leonard is also among the top entries going for junior men’s honours. The Morpeth youngster has enjoyed a great cross country season and knows the Harewood House course well after winning Northern under-17 gold there last year.

Photo: JHMSport

In the under-20 women’s race, Aldershot’s Niamh Brown won silver last year and is among the leading entries in the junior women’s race.

Grace Brock finished runner-up in the under-17 championships last year and makes the step up to the under-20 ranks on Saturday.

The in-form Amelia Quirk won gold ahead of the Cornwall athlete at the South of England Championships and can be expected to challenge for the top prize, while Northern champion Eleanor Bolton and Midland’s Amelia Samuels are also among the entries.

The action starts at 11.00am with the under-17 women’s championships before the senior men’s 12km event concludes the day’s 10 races at 3.00pm.

RELATED: George Routledge and his love of the English National

Timetable

11.00am: Under-17 women – 5km
11.25am: Under-15 boys – 4km
11.45am: Under-13 girls – 3km
12.05pm: Under-17 men – 6km
12.30pm: Under-13 boys – 3km
12.45pm: Under-15 girls – 4km
1.05pm: Junior women – 6km
1.35pm: Senior women – 8km
2.20pm: Junior men – 10km
3.00pm: Senior men – 12km

Meanwhile, national cross country championships also take place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland this weekend. A preview of the Scottish action at Falkirk can be found here, while the Welsh preview can be found here.

Are you a fan of Fast Running? Then please support us. For as little as the price of a monthly magazine you can support Fast Running – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

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Over 100 clubs represented by an impressive 2458 runners are entered for the Lindsays Scottish National Cross Country Championships on Saturday (February 23).

Scotland’s cross country showpiece takes centre stage at Callendar Park in Falkirk, with Olympians Steph Twell, Derek Hawkins and Freya Ross among those entered.

The event has attracted the biggest fields in 25 years of combined male and female championships with a fantastic 970 names on the entry list for senior men’s race, while a record 406 runners have entered the senior women’s event.

Twell headlines the senior women’s 10km field and will race for Kilbarchan AAC on the back of superb run at the Armagh International Road Races, where she equalled the 3km course record in 8:59.

The 29 year-old could be joined by fellow Olympian Ross on the start line, while defending champion Mhairi Maclennan will not want to relinquish her title.

Photo: Bobby Gavin

Former winner Morag Millar will also be in the hunt for medals and other leading entries include Cambuslang’s Moira Stewart and Irish international Fionnuala Ross, who is sharing her journey this year on Fast Running, Steph Pennycook and Fiona Brian.

Maclennan’s Edinburgh Uni Hare and Hounds won the team title in 2018, while Hunters Bog Trotters and Central AC have also won in the last three years. Fife AC should have a strong team at Falkirk after recently representing Great Britain at the European champion clubs cross country.

In the senior men’s race, two-time winner Andy Butchart is on the start-list but is not expected to race ahead of the European Indoor Championships in Glasgow next week.

2018 champion Kris Jones sits out and recently wrote about his Achilles issues in a recent Fast 10: class of 2019 article.

The ‘cavalry charge’ start will be something to behold in the senior men’s race with hundreds of club vests on display and last year’s silver and bronze medalists, Lachlan Oates and Andy Douglas, will aim to stake their claim for gold as will Olympic marathoner Hawkins if he races.

Also entered is Paralympian Derek Rae, along with triathletes Marc Austin and Grant Sheldon and British ultra runners James Stewart, Marco Consani and Kyle Greig.

GB international mountain runner Jacob Adkin is another athlete who is sharing his journey this year on Fast Running and is expected to race alongside Alastair Hay, Cameron Milne, Euan Gillham, Kenny Wilson, Sean Chalmers, Michael Ferguson and Cameron Strachan.

Central AC made it eight-in-a-row last year to match a record set between 1987 and 1994 by Cambuslang Harriers, with the Central squad coached by Derek Easton intent on creating Scottish cross country history on Saturday.

Photo: Bobby Gavin

Expect Inverclyde AC, Corstorphine, Edinburgh Uni Hare and Hounds and Shettleston to be in the mix as well.

Junior races

At under-20 level, there are a couple of GB internationals to look out for in the women’s race including Edinburgh Uni Hare and Hounds’ Anna Macfadyen who is aiming to defend her crown.

Under-17 winner from 2018, Eloise Walker of Edinburgh AC, steps up and could challenge. Add another GB international, Giffnock North’s Erin Wallace, to the mix and the finale to this could be well worth watching.

The men’s under-20 might be more open and some of the contenders could include Kilbarchan AAC’s Cameron Wright, Dundee Hawkhill’s James Donald, Edinburgh AC’s Freddie Carcas, Law and District AC’s James Gillon, Shettleston Harriers’ Jamie Burns, andCambuslang Harriers’ Gavin Smith.

The 2018 under-17 champion, Kilbarchan’s Jack Patton, returns aiming to win back-to-back golds at that age category.

The under-13 girls event at 11.00am is the first of 10 races at Falkirk, with the senior men’s race the concluding the action at 2.30pm.

There will be extensive video coverage online on Saturday evening courtesy of Vinco, while shorter highlights of each race will be on Scottish Athletics YouTube channel.

Meanwhile, national cross country championships also take place in England, Wales and Northern Ireland this weekend. A preview of the English National Cross Country Championships can be found here and the Welsh preview can be found here.

Are you a fan of Fast Running? Then please support us. For as little as the price of a monthly magazine you can support Fast Running – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

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Jakob Ingebrigtsen showed his ‘majority’ to pounce at the perfect time and take the win down the home straight at the International PSD Bank Meeting Dusseldorf on Wednesday evening (February 20).

After breaking the world indoor mile record in Birmingham on Saturday, it was no surprise to see Ethiopia’s teenage star Samuel Tefera at the front behind the pacers in the early laps around the 200m track in the German city.

Once the final pacemaker stepped off the track, Tefera was at the forefront, but European 1500m and 5000m champion Ingebrigtsen was quick to close the gap to ensure the final leg of the IAAF World Indoor Tour had an exciting finish.

As the two teenage stars came around the final bend in Dusseldorf, Ingebrigtsen moved out to the second lane, and powered home with strength beyond his years, to take to win in 3:36.02, with Tefera clocking 3:36.34.

Ingebrigtsen’s victory set a new indoor under-20 world record and broke the Norwegian indoor best.

Even though Tefera ran 3:31.04 last week, the time isn’t an under-20 record because his 20th birthday is later this year.

The middle brother of the Ingebrigtsen star trio, Filip, was third across the finish line in 3:38.62.

Another Norwegian record and the meeting record are only the beginning for @JakobIng

Plus the 18-year-old just got a new tattoo that's pretty accurate #WorldIndoorTour pic.twitter.com/UDeYcdEot3

— IAAF (@iaaforg) February 20, 2019

Earlier this month, Ingebrigtsen, who won an unprecedented third successive under-20 title at the European Cross Country Championships in Tilburg, ran a then world indoor lead 1500m time of 3:36.21 in Baerum.

That also smashed his previous European indoor under-20 record of 3:40.96 and older brother Henrik’s four year-old national indoor record of 3:39.70.

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Ireland’s Fionnuala McCormack has been added to the elite field for the Boston Marathon on Monday, April 15.

McCormack last raced over 26.2 miles at the Rio Olympic Games in 2016 where she finished 20th in a personal best 2:31:22.

The 34-year-old, who has competed at three Olympic Games and a record 15 European Cross Country Championships, became a mother for the first time last autumn.

Following the arrival of her daughter, McCormack made a return to racing at the Northern Ireland International Cross Country in January, finishing in sixth place.

Most recently, the two-time European Cross Country Champion clocked 33:21 to take the win at the Enniscorthy 10k road race.

In Boston, McCormack will come up against 11 female athletes who have personal best times under 2:23:00, including 2018 winner Desiree Linden of the United States and compatriot Jordan Hasay.

They join four women who have run under 2:20 including 2017 Boston champion Edna Kiplagat of Kenya and Ethiopian trio Aselefech Mergia, Mare Dibaba and Worknesh Degefa.

The previously announced Boston Marathon elite fields can be found here.

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Scottish Athletics has announced that the fields for the 2019 Lindsays National XC will be the largest overall for a quarter of a century since men’s and women’s championships combined in 1993-94.

The entry figure for the Scottish Cross Country Championships on Saturday, February 23 is a fantastic 2458 which out-strips the previous best from a couple of years ago.

The 26th edition of the event, which takes place at Falkirk’s Callendar Park, features 10 races from under-13 through to seniors and masters, and the governing body believes this is the biggest participation national championship event in Scottish sport.

The 2019 entry has risen by 184 athletes on last year’s 2274 tally and is up by 659 since 2011 – when the tally was 1799. That’s a rise of 37 percent in those eight years.

“We’re ecstatic about these entry numbers and must thank our clubs for their wonderful response,” said Mark Munro, chief executive of Scottish Athletics, who expressed a huge thank you to athletics clubs, coaches and team managers who are making such a commitment to competition.”

Among the notable entries in the senior races are Olympians Steph Twell, Freya Ross, Derek Hawkins and 2018 champions Kris Jones and Mhairi Maclennan.

Photo: Bobby Gavin

Also entered are Luke Traynor, Ross Houston, Derek Rae, James Stewart, Marco Consani, Kyle Greig, Fionnuala Ross, Morag Millar, Steph Pennycook, Fiona Brian, Lachlan Oates, Alastair Hay, Andy Douglas and triathletes Marc Austin and Grant Sheldon.

Munro added: “It’s a wonderful event and we’re seeing so many people just wanting to compete and be part of that now. We’ve been pushing the message ‘Competition – It’s What You Train For’ over the past three or four years and we’re getting athletes, coaches and clubs buying into that.

“Lindsays came on board as sponsors of the Cross Country Season some five years ago with a commitment to try and help us grow participation.

“Their support has enabled us to improve a couple of aspects, bringing in an initiative like the Lindsays Trophy, and helped us raise the profile of the National XC in particular.

“Video footage from the event is very popular and last year for the first time we experimented with drone footage, which was excellent.”

The biggest rise in entries is in the senior ranks, with a current figure of 979 signed up for the senior men’s race, while there is an all-time record entry for the senior women’s race at 406 – up by 41 runners on last year. It is worth noting that in 2017 Scottish Athletics equalised the men’s and women’s distance to 10km.

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