Athletics News

British runners out in force at cross-country events

British runners out in force at cross-country events

Most of the UK’s top leagues took place at the weekend together with a UK Cross Challenge at Scone and a big North Eastern relay and a major schools event

To read our report from the British Athletics Cross Challenge event at Scone in Scotland, click here. For more in-depth results from the event plus other UK domestic races, see below.

BIRMINGHAM LEAGUE, Division 1, Warley Woods, January 14

It was back to normal service as the students from Birmingham and Loughborough returned to domination, Martin Duff reports.

It was Loughborough who came out on top with five of the first six runners home and they were led by the leading trio of Baptiste Fourmont, Tom Patrick and Max Hayden.

This was the first UK outing for Fourmont who has a 3000m steeplechase best of 8:44.67 and who was 13th in last year’s French cross-country championships

Only Birmingham’s Williams Brown spoiled the Loughborough party and his team were a comfortable second.

To complete the top three teams, it was more students, this time from Warwick, who showed the local clubs the way home.

Birchfield’s Ed Banks was headed this time in the veteran stakes as he was narrowly beaten by Tipton’s Joe Smith but it was the younger runners who generally prevailed.

Nearly 500 men have competed in Division one’s three races so far.

Men: 1 B Fourmont I(Lough/FRA) 29:31; 2 T Patrick (Lough) 29:46; 3 M Heyden (Lough) 29:58; 4 W Brown (Birm U) 30:11; 5 N Wills (Lough) 30:19; 6 F Jennings (Lough, U20) 30:21; 7 E Moran (Birm U) 30:26; 8 H Arnall (R&N) 30:28; 9 S Vine (Birm U) 30:30; 10 S Birkett (Birm U, U20) 30:33; 11A Peacock (BRAT) 30:39; 12 E Blythman (Birm U) 30:42

M40: 1 J Smith (Tip); 2 E Banks (Bir); 3 O Harradence (RSC)

U20: 3 T Jones (Warw U)

TEAM: 1 Loughborough 33; 2 Birmingham U 60; 3 Warwick U 201; 4 BRAT 244; 5 Tipton 300; 6 Birchfield 341

B TEAM: 1 Birm U 144; 2 Lough 233; 3 BRAT 572

M40 TEAM: 1 Tipton 24; 2 BRAT 42; 3 R Sutton C 70

B TEAM: 1 Tipton 128

Standings after 3 matches

TEAM (best 2 of 3 so far): 1 Birm U 176; 2 BRAT 526; 3 Birchfield 573

B TEAM: 1 BRAT 1672

M40 TEAM: 1 Tipton 76; 2 RSC 224; 3 BRAT 214

B TEAM: 1 RSC 481

BIRMINGHAM LEAGUE Div 2, Bromsgrove, January 14

Western Tempo continued their march to the top flight with another team win on their home patch of Pittville Park, Martin Duff reports.

They were again led home by Dom James, a minute clear of Leamington’s Callum Hanlon.

Men: 1 D James (W Tempo) 31:05; 2 C Hanlon (Leam) 32:03; 3 D Gillett (Telf) 32:03; 4 B Candola (Leam) 32:45; 5 B Holmes (S&SH) 33:09; 6 L Richardson (B&R,…

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