Mallory Park in Leicestershire was the setting for the annual space championship on January 25 because the occasion averted the much-publicised storm sweeping the nation
Kadar Omar and Olivia Mathias took the 2 senior titles at a venue bathed in wonderful winter sunshine and held at a brand new location for cross-country working that offered a testing course with synthetic mounds and a few mud though some races did appear to run shorter than the marketed distances.
Males
Omar took the initiative proper from the beginning and his Birchfield clubmate Omar Ahmed was by no means capable of get on phrases and had his personal battle for second spot with Rugeley’s Lee Gratton earlier than securing silver.
The beginning of all races was downhill, one thing that made for some kamikaze working particularly off of the a number of mounds which can be a everlasting function of the park. After the primary small lap, Omar was forward however, working off a type of mounds actually careered down the hill nearly dropping stability.
Thereafter all went properly and a profitable margin of twenty-two seconds was the tip consequence. Ahmed was headed for a number of the race by Gratton earlier than securing second, albeit by only some seconds. Birchfield might need hoped for achievement within the crew stakes with their one-two but it surely was Newark who, led dwelling by fourth positioned Elliott Smith Rasmusson, packed their scoring six within the prime 23.
Kadar Omar (Martin Duff)
The 2 Birchfield males have typically taken it in turns to be forward however winner Omar stated that he has moved his dwelling from Birmingham to Rugeley in order that he can prepare on Cannock Chase and is now happy with the rewards of that transfer. “I had a tough yr earlier than that transfer, however right here I made a decision to place my foot down,” stated Omar.
The Midland Masters title went to M35 Gratton, the Worldwide Masters silver medallist, however M45 Worldwide Masters winner Alistair Watson was sixth general. A number of winner in that competitors Tim Hartley was prime M55.
Males: 1 Ok Omar (Bir) 36:38; 2 O Ahmed (Bir) 37:00; 3 L Gratton (Ruge) 37:05; 4 E Smith-Rasmusson (Newark) 37:21; 5 F McGrath (B&W) 37:37; 6 A Watson (Notts, M45) 37:48
M50: 1 M Makin (Herm) 45:00
M55: 1 T Hartley (Notts) 43:30
M60: 1 B Nock (Hales) 55:19
TEAM:1 Newark 79; 2 Notts 149; 3 Birchfield 318
M65+ (brief 8km, ran with ladies): 1 Ok Spare (N’brook) 33;08
M75: 1 A Daley (Glouc) 36:27
Omar Ahmed and Lee Grantham
Girls
With boyfriend and Olympic triathlon champion Alex Yee readily available, it was Commonwealth triathlon crew silver medallist Olivia Mathias who pushed arduous from the beginning. The Newark runner pulled three extra ladies away from the remainder of the sphere as Hannah Seager, Rosie Hamilton-Jones and defending champion Gemma Metal adopted in her wake.
Matthias’ victory was by no means actually unsure regardless of dropping to Metal within the Leicestershire County championship. It was an off-colour Metal who fought herself up from fourth to take silver and comfortably lead her Charnwood membership to a crew victory.
During the last 5 years, the Mathias had solely ever raced as soon as in straight working occasions, a yr however selected to have a second outing when realising that the championship was being held at Mallory Park. “I’ve spent a few years doing Triathlons right here,” stated the 26-year-old.
Though Mathias victory appeared assured, the Welsh worldwide stated that she “thought to myself: have I gone too early?” There was no want to fret, as victory was hers by properly over 150 metres.
Metal, who admitted that she “didn’t have the legs,” took the Midland Masters W35 title and clubmate Juliet Potter, the highest W40 was in sixth spot.
Gemma Metal, Olvia Mathias, Rosie Hamilton-James (Martin Duff)
Girls: 1 O Matthias (Newark) 24:42; 2 G Metal (Appeal, W35) 25:23; 3 R Hamilton-Jones (W’bury) 25:43; 4 H Seager (Charn) 26:05; 5 S Hurst (Cov G) 26:30; 6 Juliet Potter (Charn, W40) 26:52
W45: 1 D Sherwin (Stoke) 28:28
W50: 1 M Vernon (Stoke) 29:50
W55: 1 Ok Ramsey (Charn) 30:12
W65: 1 J Kidd (Kenil) 35:55
W75: 1 A Copson (R&N) 41:35
TEAM:1 Charnwood 19; 2 Bristol & W 94; 3 Coventry G 139
Younger Athletes
The Wreake & Soar Valley membership will be relied upon to place out fairly a number of medallists and their Daniel Van Aardt comfortably took the junior males’s title, regardless of a dogged race-long chase by Birchfield’s Ash Burgess.
However, it was Birchfield who took crew honours, however solely two golf equipment managed to complete a scoring quartet.
It was higher within the under-17 males’s occasion the place 4 squads completed a race wherein final yr’s under-15 champion Archie Lane graduated to take the upper age group.
“It began so rapidly, then you definitely had the wind and the hills, stated the Leamington runner.
Favorite Ewan Withnall, the English Faculties 1500m champion, took the under-15 boys’ occasion, though his profitable margin was simply eight seconds regardless of main all the manner. “The tactic was to take a seat in however I at all times need to get a little bit of a lead,” stated the Burton runner, who added that he might at all times use his ending dash if wanted.
Ewan Withnall (Martin Duff)
It was shut within the under-13 boys’ occasion earlier than Zak Rush gained for Solihull & Small Heath by a few ticks in a race the place, once more, solely two golf equipment fielded a scoring crew.
Lacking from the outcomes have been the robust boys age group membership Wolverhampton & Bilston, regardless of having a sequence of athletes who would have been thought to determine within the medal chases.
The most important win of the day got here from junior ladies’s race first dwelling Hannah Blundy, who had a 66-second profitable margin.
Beneath-17 ladies’s race winner Grace Burge additionally led her Metropolis of Stoke membership to crew medals though she famous that “it was fairly troublesome within the mud and up the steep banks”
Nobody might doubt the domination of Wreake & Soar Valley within the under-15 women’ occasion the place they packed their scoring 4 within the first 9.
It was Phoebe Langlands who led all through with Maisie Mullet vainly chasing for a membership one-two and this was regardless of having a fall on the second lap.
Stroud additionally produced a champion as Joselyn Hathway gained the youngest women’ group race, the under-13s.
U20 Males: 1 D Van Aardt (Wreake) 22;18; 2 A Burgess (Bir) 22:37; 3 A Savage-Swaine (W’bury) 23:26
TEAM:1 Birchfield 62; 2 BRAT 99
U17: 1 A Lane (Leam) 16:40; 2 S Lambert (Strat) 17:04; 3 S Collins (Wreake) 17:07
TEAM:1 Stratford 34; 2 Charnwood 64; 3 Wreake & Soar Valley 81
U15: 1 E Withnall (Burt) 11:21; 2 J Pares (Mansf) 11:29; 3 F McAllister (R’cliffe) 11:37
TEAM:1 R Sutton Coldfield 58; 2 Wreake & S V 87; 3 Mansfield 90(
U13: 1 Z Rush &S&SH) 9:01; 2 F Stanton (C&S) 9:03; 3 O Adams (Shrews) 9:33
TEAM:1 Charnwood 70; 2 Stroud 112
U20 Girls: 1 H Blundy (Wells) 18:55; 2 B Horner (Wreake) 20:01; 3 S Duvl (RSC) 20:14
TEAM:1 Stratford 34
U17: 1 G Burge (Stoke) 16:43; 2 L Barker (S&SH) 17:06; 3 F Collins (Hales) 17:16
TEAM:1 Stoke 21; 2 Halesowen 22; 3 Stroud 71
U15: 1 P Langlands (Wreake) 12:36; 2 M Mullett (Wreake) 12:49; 3 H Turner (Stoke) 12:56
TEAM:1 Wreake & SV 19; 2 Stoke 35; 3 Charnwood 73
U13: 1 J Hathway (Stroud) 9:57; 2 A Kemp (Wreake) 10:00; 3 B Brinza (Dav) 10:07
TEAM:1 Stratford 59; 2 Wreake & SV 81; 3 Stroud 92
» Subscribe to AW journal right here, try our new podcast right here or signal as much as our digital archive of again points from 1945 to the current day right here
