8 January 2009

UK Athletics has altered its holding camp plans for the AVIVA Great Britain & Northern Ireland Team ahead of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Amman, Jordan on 28 March. Following in-depth research from UKA physiologists, it was deemed that the original plan to stage a holding camp in Cyprus in the lead-up to Jordan would be of minimal benefit.

Two years ago, UKA utilised a holding camp in Durban, South Africa before going onto the IAAF World Cross in Mombasa, Kenya where temperatures hovered in the high 30s. In contrast, based on meteorological data from the last 10 years, the temperature in Jordan is likely to be around 17 degrees Celsius, much milder than originally assumed.

Instead, UKA will organise a week-long camp for the team based in the UK, most likely at one of the UK Athletics High Performance Centres at Loughborough or St Mary’s University College, Twickenham.

UK Athletics National Endurance Coach Ian Stewart said: “The new arrangements will mean that more personal coaches will be able to attend the camp to work with their athletes in the lead up to the championships. It will also mean the team have access to more medical staff in the build-up.

“There is still huge great value in bringing the team together to work together. I see the squad-based approach as the cornerstone of the future success for British distance running and we look forward to a highly productive week in the lead up to Jordan. 

The move has the full support of by the recently-formed UK Athletics Endurance Advisory Group chaired by Lord Coe. The Aviva GB & NI Team will also now be selected on Tuesday 10 March and named on Wednesday 11 March, one day later than originally published. This is to accommodate selectors returning from the European Indoor Championships in Turin, Italy on 6-8 March.