On Saturday 28th January, for the first time in the club’s history, a full team of women and men participated in the Southern England Cross Country Championships at Parliament Hill, Hampstead Heath. This was to be an eye-opening experience for much of the team, mixing with top clubs and giving the club a chance to show off our strength and depth.
With a full schedule of races taking place throughout the day, it wasn’t until mid-afternoon and race 9 of the day that the team were able to truly test themselves on an already churned up, seriously muddy course, not to mention the undulating race profile.
First up, the Senior ladies took on a two lap course over 8km; one longer loop followed by another shorter one. Libby Marchant picked herself up after a tumble to lead the team home. Ann Bath, who has in recent years taken part in this race as a solo runner, was the next club lady home, closely followed by Laura Hooke and Sarah Lothian. The team finished 62nd.
The final race of the day was the mens’ race, which consisted of three longer laps totalling 15km. Alastair McGeoch-Williams was first home for the club. Several minutes later came Chris Rawcliffe, closely followed by John Matthews, Joe Brewer, and Nathan Sayers. Moustafa Fawzy completed the 6 man squad, with the team finishing in 41st place overall, compounding further misery on our local rivals The Stragglers. The extended team consisted of Anthony Whelan and Rodney McCulloch making their Cross Country debuts, as well as Joe Chang, Martin Threakall, Geoff Tookey, and Peter Grecian, with Ed Francis unfortunately dropping out due to injury.
All put in a valiant effort, and it was a brilliant day out for all involved. Hopefully next year we can cement our position even further.
Full results:
http://seaa.org.uk/images/
http://seaa.org.uk/images/
Senior Women – 8km
133 Libby Marchant – 35:58
527 Ann Bath – 50:30
546 Laura Hooke – 52:21
560 Sarah Lothian – 55:15
Team – 62nd
Senior Men – 15km
187 Alastair McGeoch-Williams – 57:22
416 Chris Rawcliffe – 61:46
449 John Matthews – 62:29
452 Joe Brewer – 62:31
478 Nathan Sayers – 62:56
556 Moustafa Fawzy – 65:01
585 Anthony Whelan – 65:33
589 Joe Chang – 65:36
630 Martin Threakall – 66:55
845 Geoff Tookey – 72:36
901 Peter Grecian – 74:26
941 Rodney McCulloch – 75:35
DNF Ed Francis
Team – 41st
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