6th July 2015

Weekend Round Up Including European Mountain Running Championships Report

6 July 2015 

European Mountain Running Championships – Porto Moniz, Portugal, 4 July

Emma Clayton (coach: Andrew Henderson) claimed individual bronze at the European (Uphill) Mountain Running Championships in Portugal on Saturday, to improve on two sixth place finishes at the last two editions of the event. It came on a day when the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team won three team medals including gold in the senior women’s competition. 

Clayton won silver at the World Mountain Running Championships in 2013 on an up and down course but added to her collection in Porto Moniz and was delighted to win her first major medal on an uphill course. 

The next best Briton was the experienced Victoria Wilkinson who consolidated sixth spot with Rebecca Robinson using her marathon strength to secure ninth place. Debutant Annie Conway just missed out on a top ten placing as she came home in eleventh to help the team to the gold medal ahead of Austria and France.

The senior men’s squad continued the medal success as the quartet claimed team silver with Robbie Simpson (Martin Cox) and Andrew Douglas (Sophie Dunnett) narrowly missing out on the medal places in fourth and fifth respectively.  

The duo were supported by Chris Smith who finished in 17th and Nick Swinburn (Lindsay Dunn) was 19th. They pipped Switzerland for the silver team medal but Italy won the team gold after their top four athletes were inside the top 13. 

In the junior men’s race which took place as the heat was rising, Max Nicholls (Peter Brenchley) and Jacob Adkin (Gregor Nicholson) enjoyed the performances of their careers to date to claim fifth and sixth place against the best in Europe. Nicholls beat his compatriot by nine second in 51:18 to guide the team to the rostrum places. Jack Willis (Colin Gardener/Mike Cotton) performed admirably for 14th whilst Ciaran Lewis (Phil Banning) improved on the flatter section of the course near the finish to claim 33rd. 

The junior women´s race kicked off proceedings with a fast steep start suggesting that getting out well would be crucial for the latter stages. Davies competed valiantly within the field and paced the race well to finish in ninth just over a minute off the podium positions. Ilkley’s Georgia Malir (Henderson) was next in 22nd with debutant; Lizzie Apsley (Syd Bates)pleased to finish one place behind in 23rd. Scot Catriona Graves (John Bell) was 33rd as the team finished sixth overall.

Full individual and team standings can be found here: http://www.european-athletics.org/competitions/european-mountain-running-championships/ 


European Cup Combined Events Super League, Aubagne, France, 4-5 July

While Russia held on to their European Cup title in Southern France, Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s eight-strong combined events squad managed to retain their Super League status, equalling the sixth-place finish they achieved last year in Torun, Poland.  The octet had been lying seventh, in the second relegation spot, overnight, but a final tally of 38,791 points gave them a cushion of 38 points over the Netherlands (38,753), who were relegated to the First League together with the eighth-placed Czech Republic (36,791). Russia won with 41,700 points, with France second (40,724), Estonia third (39,481), Ukraine fourth (39, 461) and Belarus fifth (39,414).

Liam Ramsey (coach: Mike Corden) lay third in the decathlon at the end of the opening day and held on to a top-ten spot on Sunday, finishing eighth with 7774 points. His marks were: 100m, 10.91 (-0.1); long jump, 7.18m (-0.2); shot, 12.91m; high jump, 2.01m; 400m, 47.77; 110m hurdles, 14.71 (-0.8); discus, 38.66m; pole vault, 4.60m; javelin, 48.74m; 1500m, 4:31.65.

Martin Brockman (self-coached) just missed out on a top ten place, finishing eleventh with 7583 points. His individual performances were: 11.36 (-0.1); 7.18m (-0.2); 12.91m; 2.01m; 47.27m; 14.71 (-0.8); 38.66m; 4.60m; 48.74m; 4:31.65.

Ben Gregory (Julie Hollman-Dodoo) was close behind Brockman, scoring 7527 in 13th place. Gregory’s marks were: 11.31 (-0.1); 7.06m (+2.0); 13.61m; 2.04m; 49.47; 14.49 (-0.7); 39.36m; 4.20m; 49.83m; 4:43.03.

Jack Andrew (Ian Grant) was 28th with 7083 points. His performances were: 11.36 (-0.1); 6.57m (+2.0); 12.19m; 1.83m; 50.70; 14.89 (-0.7); 38.08 m; 4.40m; 45.22m; 4:25.82.

Jessica Taylor’s (Mike Holmes) hopes of making an individual impression on the heptathlon came to grief when she failed to finish the opening event, the 100m hurdles. However, with team points at stake, the 2014 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist battled through the disappointment to take 4845 points from the remaining six events for 28th place overall, notching PBs in the 200m and 800m. Her marks were: 100m hurdles, DNF (-0.4) ; high jump, 1.66m; shot, 12.30m; 200m, 23.94 (+1.0); long jump, 6.13m (-1.1); javelin, 35.30m; 800m, 2:14.10. 

Jess Tappin (Julie Hollman-Dodoo) emerged as the highest placed Briton, finishing 16th with 5444 points. Tappin, who was sixth in last year’s Commonwealth heptathlon and stands second to Olympic champion Jessica Ennis-Hill in this year’s British rankings, achieved the following marks: 14.01 (-0.7); 1.63m; 11.17m; 24.61 (+0.5); 5.29m (-1.0); 37.00m; 2:13.29.

Elise Lovell (Stephen King, Hastings) was the second placed member of the British team, 21st with 5255 points. Her individual performances were: 13.98 (+0.2); 1.60m; 10.09m; 24.58 (+0.6); 5.71m (+0.0); 30.83m; 2:20.07.

Jo Rowland (Antonio Minichiello, Crawley) was 24th with 5208 points. Her marks were: 15.36 (-0.1), 1.66m; 12.06m; 25.91 (+0.8); 5.52m (+1.0); 38.58m; 2:22.43.

http://www.european-athletics-statistics.org/db/eurathresults.php?CID=12862217

Morrisons Great North 10k, Gateshead, 5 July

The second-placed Briton in April’s London Marathon, Matty Hynes (Stan Markley) had hopes of providing a local success in the latest race in the Great Run series. The Gateshead Harrier, who hails from Middlesbrough, finished runner up to Uganda’s Olympic marathon champion Stephen Kiprotich in last year’s race and this time he had to settle for third place in 30:10 behind Dutch 10km record holder Abdi Nageeye (29:50) and Ireland’s Mark Christie (30.09). 

Ian Hudspith, a  veteran of the 2002 Commonwealth games 10,000m, was fourth in 31:11, with Scottish 2014 Commonwealth Games marathon man Derek Hawkins (Robert Hawkins) fifth in 32:12.

http://www.runbritainrankings.com/results/results.aspx?meetingid=127185