Cross Country season kickstarted at the delayed National Cross
The heat of Hong Kong, the mountains of Alpe d’Huez and even a plain old woolly hat played important training roles as this season’s cross-country runners got their year under way at the ECCA National Cross Country.
Usually, the National Cross Country Championships takes place in the middle of winter in February, but due to the heavy rainfall we experienced earlier this year, the race was moved to the unusual slot of September. That meant for the first and probably only time ever it wasn’t snow, mud and ice runners were worried about, it was the heat.
Nobody doubted the heritage, history and importance of the race. Past champions, medallists and competitors include every English superstar you can think of from Mo Farah and Paula Radcliffe to Steve Ovett and more. But this year everyone had not just to heat to consider but also how to prepare for such a prestigious race at such an odd time of year. Was it worth it? Yes said each and every runner. But how do you train for such a big race at such an unusual time?
The U17 boys’ winner, Michael Clarke (Coach: Jane Clarke, Club: City of Norwich) had the answer when he explained how he coped with the rolling heats and warm conditions better than everybody else. “I’ve been training for this one all summer and upped my mileage especially. Plus, I went to Hong Kong for two months with my dad where it’s really hot and very hilly, so that training really helped me,” he said.
In that same race, Thomas Preston (Paul Larkins, Peterborough and Nene Valley) had to opt for a closer to home option – a holiday in Devon. There, he donned a woolly hat in August as he included some steep hills in his preparation. The reward was a bronze medal. He also had some sun cream when a teammate desperately put out a request for some. Not something you hear at many cross-country races.
Emilia Platt (Salford) also revealed the training she used to get ready for her first-ever national title included a training camp at Alpe d’Huez, a brutal set of mountains that is popular in the Tour de France cycling race. She trained there to prepare for a race in the French Alps late last month called the ETC which includes 15km and 1200m of technical climbs and descents.
“Actually Weston Park was quite flat for me really,” she laughed when she heard her competitors had described the course as really tough because of the hills. Her victory was due in part to a new-found love of the mountains and also because of a charity project she was fortunate to become involved with. As an inner city resident, the hills weren’t on her radar but an initiative by former armed robber, John McAvoy designed to get people out to experience what the mountains can provide has set her going on a fabulous journey that already includes a national title and a top 10 finish in the Alps.
A race with history
The National has long been on every runner’s bucket list and this year was no different. After easing away for a comfortable win, the men’s winner, Hugo Milner (Derby) said: “I love the National and I really wanted to run it back in February, but actually I was in Australia then on a training camp [for triathlon] so I was secretly pleased it was moved. It’s really important to me and I’ve dreamed of it since winning a silver medal in the U13s years ago.”
Similarly, the women’s winner Niamh Brown (AFD) loves cross-country and in particular the National. Even the change of date didn’t put her off, although unlike Milner she did wish it had been in February as she thought one or two rivals had opted out. That was the wrong choice as the record books will forever have her as the winner a bit like legend Diane Leather who won the title in 1953, 54, 55 and 56.
Every race has heritage and a back story. Triathlon gold medallist Alex Yee (Kenneth Pike, Kent) was third in the U15 boys’ race in 2015. Paula Radcliffe (Bedford and County), former marathon world record holder won the U20 women’s race. It’s truly the path to the top and plenty still recognise that.
Paige Quinn (Hayley Ratcliff, Torbay), the winner of the U15 girls’ race summed it perfectly when she said: “It was amazing to win, and I couldn’t believe it when I broke the tape at the end. I’ve never done that before.”
For many, a medal or for the elite few, a win at the National is a once in a lifetime event. Eamonn Martin, the man behind this year’s National and who insisted it took place when all around him questioned whether it should, recognised its importance in the calendar, whenever that might be. “I wanted to give everybody the chance to race in an event that is hugely important. That’s why we allowed runners to drop back to the age group they would have been in last winter, so they could experience what it would have been like and to see what they might achieve,” he explained.
What will be fascinating is that this winter will feature two Nationals. The one just gone and then the 2025 race at Parliament Hill on a cold winter’s day. Who will feature? Will it be the same athletes as at Weston Park just north of Wolverhampton? That’s a wonderfully rolling summer parkland surface that needed mileage but also track form. “I’ve been doing more mileage in general,” said the U15 boys’ winner Mikey Bacon (Richard Harris, Rotherham), but unlike London in February, Shropshire in September also required a fair of speed. “I have had a good summer on the track, so I knew I could be high up,” said Theo Creed (Hercules Wimbledon) after his win in the U13 boys’ event. Presumably Parliament Hill will be all about strength and endurance and not much more.
Time will tell, but what we do know: it’s going to be a cracker. See you at the English Cross-Country Relays in Mansfield on 2 November.
All the results can be found here.