UK Athletics announced today that four athletes will be in the Norwich Union Great Britain and Northern Ireland team at the European 10,000m Challenge to be run in Ferrara, Italy, on Saturday 7 April.

Jo Pavey (Exeter Harriers) and Hayley Yelling (Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow AC) will pursue the women’s qualifying time of 31 minutes 40 seconds for the IAAF World Championships in Osaka, Japan, in August. Kate Reed (Bristol AC) will chase the qualifying time of 32:20 for the World University Games in Bangkok, Thailand.

Mike Skinner (Blackheath Harriers and Bromley AC) will contest the men’s race after finishing as the second GB & NI team scorer in the men’s 12km at last weekend’s IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Mombasa.

Mo Farah (Newham and Essex Beagles), the European 5000m silver medallist and European Cross Country Champion, had to decline selection because of a slight thigh strain suffered during his inspirational run into 10^th place in Mombasa.

His coach, Alan Storey, the UK Athletics Senior Performance Manager for Endurance, said: “Mo should only need a couple of days off but it seems more logical to end his winter campaign now and take a break before preparing for the summer.

“We will review Mo’s spring racing programme but it is now very unlikely to include his track debut at 10,000m.”

Note: The last time Ferrara staged a major event, the European Cross Country Championships in 1998, Paula Radcliffe won her first major title.