England triumph at Trofeo Opitergium Road Race

This week the England under-20 contingent were in action at the Trofeo Opitergium Road Race taking place in the beautiful Italian town of Oderzo against seven strong European teams.

Spectacular to watch, the race takes place over a series of 1km loops, with the teams completing ten laps during the 10km race. Despite not taking place at the peak of summer, the athletes still had to contend with very humid conditions which affected some in the latter stages.

Under-20 women’s race

The women’s race was equally competitive with Isobelle Jones (Wolverhampton & Bilston, Ross Jones) taking it out from the start. With a very gutsy run throughout, Isobelle earned her place on the podium finishing in second.

Similar to the men’s team, the women were determined to make it on to the team podium. All finishing very close to each other, their combined times topped the rankings leaving them the overall champions. For many of the athletes, this was their first experience of representing England and competing abroad and they did themselves, their clubs and England Athletics very proud!

• 2nd - Isobelle Jones – 16:56 (Wolverhampton & Bilston, Ross Jones)
• 5th – Zoe Gilbody – 17:16 (Wreake & Soar Valley, Sarah Benson)
• 7th – Sarah Barrett 17:20 (City of Norwich, Lawrence Wade)
• 18th – Charlotte Dillon – 17:42 (Houghton Harriers, Lynn Cooper)

Under-20 men’s race

Working together as a team, the English men stuck in the pack for the first five laps. Quinn Miell-Ingram (Radley AC, Wendy Miell-Ingram) was up at the front for most of the race with Mark Ruby (Poole AC, Mark Pauley) close behind. As the race progressed, the pace slowly wound up as some athletes started to drop off. With team positions up for grabs, the whole team made every second count, giving 100% to the line to be rewarded with third place overall.

Speaking on the race, Quinn Miell-Ingram said:

"It was a great experience and such an enjoyable trip. The longer distance as well as the heat made it a very tough race. I was slightly disappointed about how it played out, but I am very happy with the 3rd place team result. The organisation and team spirit were excellent. I met some great people and learned more about racing abroad."

• 5th – Quinn Miell-Ingram – 31:11 (Radley AC, Wendy Miell-Ingram)
• 9th - Mark Ruby – 31:45 (Poole AC, Mark Pauley)
• 15th - Freddie Roden – 32:21 (Abbey Runners)
• 22nd - Henry Pickard – 34:16 (Stockport, Kyle Bennett)

Other photos by Ian Ruby. Top photo by Jo Wilkinson.