Cross Country News

SEAA Cross County Championships - postponed to 16 February

21 January 2013

Due to the weather conditions and state of the ground, the SEAA Cross Country Championships due to be held at Parliament Hill Fields on Saturday 26 January have been postponed until Saturday 16 February.

International call-up for Olivia Walwyn-Bush

29 November 2012

CoNAC athlete Olivia Walwyn-Bush has gained her first England vest at cross country. Competing in Liverpool in the European Cross Country trials last weekend and despite having an impressive run she narrowly missed out on gaining selection for the Great Britain senior team that will compete in Budapest on Sunday.  Happily, her fine effort has gained her selection for the England team that will travel to Spain in two weeks time for an Inter-Country International.

Olivia is no stranger to the international scene. She has previously represented England and Great Britain at mountain running. Now based in Cheshire, Olivia is a long-standing CoNAC member where she was coached as a junior athlete by Tim and Pauline Ash.

Norfolk AAA Cross Country Championships 2013

28 November 2012

The Norfolk AAA Cross Country Championships will take place at Barnham Commom, Thetford on Sunday 6 January 2013.

Please click here for an Entry Form.

End of Season XC Presentation Evening - Friday 18 May

26 April 2012

Tickets are now on sale for CoNAC's Annual Cross Country Presentation Evening. The event will take place at Roundwood, 44 Ringland Road, Taverham, Norwich, NR8 6HY on Friday 18 May from 6.30pm and tickets are priced at just £10 each.

As well as the presentation of the XC awards for the 2011/12 season, the evening will also include a hot & cold buffet, games with prizes, a raffle and a disco to follow.

You can puchase tickets from Harry Knowles on Tuesday evenings at the City Academy (6.30pm - 8pm) or during the same times on Thursday evenings at the Sportspark - or please click here to contact our Cross Country Coordinator Gary Finch by email.

Jane takes BMAF crown again

26 March 2012

One of the club's star veteran athletes Jane Clarke made her way to Bath to compete in the British Masters Cross Country Championships. Racing in the Over 50 category she was keen to retain her title won last year.  This she did with aplomb comfortably winning the 6km race thus making sure that she took her place on top of the podium.

Harrell produces best-ever performance at the National

27 February 2012

On Saturday the historic Parliament Hill Field, London attracted a record number of over 6000 competitors which included a large contingent from the Club. They were there to compete in the Saucony English National Cross Country Championships that were staged in weather akin to summer and firm underfoot conditions, a far cry from what is the norm for cross county running.

The ten event programme as expected produced some excellent races. Ashley Harrell competing in the championships for the first time at senior level continues to display his rich vein of form. With 1700 athletes toeing the line at the start for the demanding 12km race Harrell was always challenging up with the leaders. It was only in the final quarter of the race that he lost a little ground but was delighted to record a superb 7th place finish. However, it was disappointing that the club could not close in a scoring team to back up his fine performance.

The situation was rectified in the Senior Ladies 8km race in which the club team recorded a very creditable 7th place.  Olivia Walwyn-Bush, getting over recent injury problems, was pleased to finish in a high 17th position, ably backed up by Kelly Rushton in 74th place and Nicky Alford who was just outside the top 100 on 106th position. 650 ladies completed the race.

The first race of the day saw the Under 17 Girls take centre stage when racing over 5km. Tasha Potgeiter set off with intent and went on to produce arguably her best race of the winter season when finishing in a high 26th position. Mabel Beckett's hard work was rewarded with a finishing spot of 45th while sisters Emily and Anne Hoogkamer closed in the scoring four when finishing in 69th and 99th places respectively. Their all-round efforts were rewarded with a pleasing 6th place finish in the team results. The Under 15 Girls quartet racing over 4km went one better when, of the 37 teams completing they were placed in a very respectable 5th position. Megan Soanes led them home in 24th place, Sophie Alden finished in 69th position followed by Alice Cheverton in 79th place. It was left to Megan Bird to close the team in when placed 135th.

Ashley Waterson 64th, Elliott Morina 114th, Jamie Finch 160th and Mark Allison 183rd in a field of almost 400 competitors were a little disappointed at not finishing higher than their mid-table position of 15th in the Under 15 Boys 4.5km race. It was a similar story for the Under 17 Boys. Competing over 6km Tom Hook was looking for a top 10 finish which sadly did not materialise when placed 19th. Sean Watson following a protracted chest infection was in better form when placed 63rd; Callum Russell 159th and Luke Alden 296th found the going tough but still gave of their all that helped the team finish in 15th position. The Under 13 Boys competing over 3km sadly were not able to field a scoring team however Luke Spear had a solid run when finishing in 40th place. Jacob Cotton gave it his best shot to cross the line in 83rd position in a race where almost 400 competed. 

A first year student at St Mary’s University College, Twickenham, Junior Alex Dunbar racing over 10km continued to display his much improved form when producing an excellent run to finish in 12th place. Iona Lake stood an excellent chance of medalling in the Junior Ladies 6km race but sadly this did not happen and she had to settle for an unlucky 13th place.

Ryston GP proves OK for CoNAC

13 February 2012

Many of the club’s younger endurance athletes were cutting their teeth with more than a degree of success in the Ryston Cross Country Grand Prix Series held on Sunday at Shouldham Warren.  The Under 9’s led the charge over 800m and it was Eden Harrison who crossed the line first in the Girls race.  Brother Conrad Harrison on this occasion had to settle for a third place finish in the Boys event.

The Under 13 Boys race over 3km saw Luke Spear secure his customary win while in the Under 13 Girls 3km race Catherine Longe and Sophie Wright followed each other home in second and third places respectively.

As expected Megan Soanes in the Under 15 Girls 3km race and Mabel Beckett racing over 4.5km in the Under 17 Girls race both recorded comfortable victories as did Sean Watson in the Under 17 Boys 4.5km race.  And in the senior races covering a tough 9km, Nicky Alford and Damian Rogers both recorded victories to round of a super day for the club.

CoNAC-ers shine at BUCS XC

6 February 2012

The British Universities Cross Country Championships took centre stage at the weekend in which many of the Club’s endurance athletes had the opportunity to represent their respective universities in a top-flight competition. The event staged over the demanding Blackweir Fields course in Cardiff proved to be very satisfying for St Mary’s University College based Ashley Harrell and Ryan Saunders. Contesting the Men's race over 10km they both produced cracking performances to finish in 3rd and 4th positions respectively. The prize for their outstanding performances, yet to be confirmed, is a place in the British Universities team that will compete in the World Universities Cross Country Championships to be staged in Lodz, Poland in April.

Stuart Huntington also representing St Mary's University College was another to produce an outstanding run when finishing in a high 13th position. The inter-university rivalry was fierce as always but with the help of the club athletes; team gold was secured for St Mary's over the strong Birmingham University squad by the small margin of 12 points.

In the same race the club's UEA based athletes played their part. Nick Earl, after running 15km in last week's South of England Championships, dug deep to finish in 63rd place. Alec Beaney worked hard for his 133rd finishing spot as did James Berehowskyj who crossed the line 177th place. Oxford Brookes University was represented by club member Josh Entwistle who was placed 84th in a race in which 320 athletes completed.

The ladies also played their part in the club's success on the day. Iona Lake and Claire Pring both first year students at Birmingham University and making their debut in the championships were pleased to finish high up the field that helped Birmingham take team silver. Iona finished in 13th place with Claire just three places adrift in 16th spot.

In the Men's 8km race Alex Dunbar put behind him a disappointing run in the South of England Championships to finish in a much improved 6th place. Long term club member Carl Goose crossed the line in 13th position while Luke Allen had to settle for 46th spot. Oliver Maskell a first year student at Cambridge was another to make his debut in this event and had to content with a 51st finishing position in a race in which just short of 360 athletes finished.

Elsewhere the indoor season continues unabated. Rick Ward has had a busy week. A trip to Austria mid-week to compete for England over 800m in the Vienna Indoor Classic where he produced a season's best time of 1min 51.9secs when placing 4th. Soon after hitting home base Sheffield beckoned and he was off to compete in the McCain Inter City Challenge. At the end of another tough 800m race he finished in 4th place when clocking, in his words, a disappointing 1min 53.71secs.

Over in America, James Senior competing in the New Mexico Collegiate Classic is beginning to hit better indoor form when producing a winning 800m in a time of 1min 55.27secs. He will again be testing himself over 800m at the weekend and is looking to go faster. New York based Mitch Goose ran an indoor trial over 1200m in which he produced a time of 2min 56secs which equates to 3min 55secs mile pace. He anticipates carrying this excellent performance into next weekend when he will attack the 3000m distance.

CoNAC juniors grab SEAA XC medals at Brighton

31 January 2012

The course prepared for the Saucony South of England Cross Country Championships held in Stanmer Park, Brighton was classified as a true test of cross country running and so it proved to be for the CoNAC athletes taking part.

Medals on this occasion were at a premium with only the Under 13 Boys racing over 3000m and Under 15 Girls racing over 4000m mounting the podium. Luke Spear in 17th position lead the Under 13 Boys team to team bronze and was ably backed by Jacob Cotton (29th), Alfie Linstead (38th) and Cameron Lindsey (53rd). For the Under 15 Girls it was Megan Soanes in 30th position who led the squad to win the team bronze. Sophie Alden (37th), Alice Cheverton (46th) and Megan Bird (53rd) made up the delighted scoring four

Top individual performance on the day was down to Tom Hook. Covering a torturous 6000m Hook was always in the pack with a chance of a medal. However, with only 600m to go he found himself in an isolated 5th place but in a strong finish he missed out on securing a bronze medal by the smallest of margins. Sean Watson despite suffering from the after effects of a chest infection hung in to finish in 78th position. Callum Russell (91st) and Luke Alden (114th) both acquitted themselves very well in what was a very tough race.

Juliet Broster was the club's sole representative in the Junior Ladies 6000m race in which she finished in a respectable 24th place. Tasha Potgieter also posted a pleasing 24th finishing spot in the Under 17 Girls 5000m race. Catherine Longe and Anna Bakewell competing in the Under 13 Girls 3000m race finished in 48th and 86th positions respectively.

The Junior Men competing over 8000m were brought home by Alex Dunbar in 17th position. Ollie Maskell crossed the line in 37th place followed by Damian Rogers 59th. Ben Stratton closed in the scoring quartet when finishing in 64th place. This was a race that the Juniors might have expected to medal but sadly a place on the podium was not to be.

Last year the Senior Ladies took the team title. With cry-offs due to injury and other commitments sadly they could not repeat that performance but for Ellie Matthews the race over 8000m proved to be a happy hunting ground when ran an excellent race to finish in a high 27th place in which 340 athletes finished. Nicky Alford (52nd) and Louise Wilkinson (134th) as expected gave of their all.

The Senior Men had to tackle a race over 15000m which tested their resolve to the limited.  Hills galore confronted the 800 competitors over their four lap course and it was Nick Earl who led the club home in 54th position, followed by Josh Entwistle in 142nd and long-serving club member Jonny Quint crossed the line in 207th spot.

With the youngsters saving the day on the medal front the club will now look forward to the National Cross Country Championships that will be held over the equally testing Parliament Hill Fields course in North London at the end of February.

Iona Lake - GB superstar!

9 January 2012

Iona Lake has risen from relative obscurity to international success in the space of just two months.  At the beginning of November, Iona - a first year student at Birmingham University - was battling for her place in the Great Britain junior team to compete at the European Cross Country Championships in Slovenia in early December.  Competing in the trial race at Liverpool she finshed 7th to just miss selection by one place but was nominated as non-travelling reserve.

Happily she had done enough to be capped for England, her first international honour, and travelled to Burgos in Spain.  Despite twisting her ankle warming up she managed to finish in a creditable 11th place.  Her second England cap came when she travelled to Brussels pre Christmas.  Ploughing through heavy mud throughout the 4km race she was delighted to finish in a close order 4th.

Following this performance her first GB selection was soon to follow when informed she was to compete in Edinburgh in the tri-international match against the USA and a European Select team.   Saturday’s televised event proved to be a turning point in Iona' brief athletic career.   Racing over 4km in the picturesque Holyrood Park she was not fazed by the best that the USA and Europe could offer and was always up with the pace in the first of the two laps moving through latterly into a top ten position. Over the final 600m she improved to 5th place, a position she held right to the finish.  She was the second Brit to cross the line behind the extremely talented GB winner Emelia Gorecka. 

Iona's unexpected high finishing position in this top flight competition certainly raised eyebrows in the British camp and there is no doubt that she is now firmly established on the international scene.

Ashley & Iona wave the England XC flag in Brussels

19 December 2011

A trip to Brussels via Eurostar proved to be a successful sortie for club athletes Iona Lake and Ashley Harrell who were there to represent England in Sunday’s Lotto Cross Cup Series. The course laid out in the Park van Laken turned out to be a quagmire as it has done for the past few years.

Iona was first away in the Junior Ladies race over 4000m. Her first England appearance in Spain in mid November was tinged with disappointment when she twisted her ankle while warming up so was not at her best. Happily on this occasion she got it right and she was delighted, after ploughing through the mud, to finish in a cracking 4th place, the second English athlete to cross the line.

Iona will have to limit her Christmas celebrations in favour of some solid training as early in the New Year she will be travelling to Edinburgh where - for the first time - she will represent Great Britain in the triangular match against the USA and Europe Select.

Ashley was the nominated 1st non travelling reserve for the Great Britain Under23 team that recently won silver in the European Cross Country Championships, so like Iona was anxious to make amends for his disappointment. Competing over a stamina sapping 10,500m course against a strong Kenyan contingent and the indomitable Ukrainian Sergiy LeBid Ashley finished in a splendid 12th position. This was arguably his best international appearance to date and a point proven when finishing just four seconds behind James Wilkinson who took individual silver in the European championship.

On the home front the club’s endurance athletes made their way to Shouldham Warren to compete in the Ryston Runners Cross Country Grand Prix. Caitlin Turner made her mark in the Under 9 Girls 800m race when finishing in second place as did Catherine Longe in the Under 13 Girls race over 3000m. The City first victor on the day came when Megan Soanes was a worthy winner of the Under 15 Girls 3000m race quickly followed by Tasha Potgieter, Mabel Beckett and Emily Hoogkamer who filled the first three places in the 6500m Under 17 Ladies race. Juliet Broster testing herself in the Seniors Ladies race also over 6500m was pleased to fill second position.

Luke Spear racing over 3km in the Under 13 Boys race came home in the runners up position. Ashley Waterson and Bruce Beckett filled the first two places in the Under 15 Boys 3000m race as did Sean Watson and Scott Greeves in the 6500m Under 17 Men’s event. Rick Ward cruised to victory in the Seniors Men’s 6500m race followed home in third place by Ollie Maskell.

Goose wins team silver at European XC champs

13 December 2011

The last two weeks have been a rollercoaster ride for Mitch Goose. Currently completing his studies at Iona University USA he was told by UK Athletics that he must return to home base to compete in the trial race for the European Cross Country Championships in order to qualify for the Great Britain Under 23 team. Two days after his long transatlantic flight he comfortably won the race to secure his selection.

Training continued unabated for the championships held on Sunday in Velenje, Slovenia in which Goose confirmed that he is now well established as a cross country international athlete when producing a performance of which he can be very proud.

Racing over a lakeside switchback 8000m course comprising of six laps he was always in contention with best that Europe can offer taking the lead with team mate James Wilkinson in the penultimate lap. Despite his best efforts over the final 800m Goose just fell off the pace but stuck to his task to finish in a superb 8th place. In the final reckoning the GB team were only headed by the strong Norwegian team so had to be content with taking team silver. Post race comment from Goose was that he was “pleasingly frustrated” with his performance having been in individual medal contention but fallen short of his expectations in the home straight. Nevertheless he can look back on the race as one his most satisfying international appearances and a confidence booster for the future.

Further afield the red and gold stripes of the club were making their presence felt. New Mexico University based Ruth Senior took on the half-marathon distance for the first time in the exotic surrounding of Las Vegas. Admitting to covering the first part of the too quickly for which she suffered latterly but despite this error of judgement she crossed the line in a very creditable 76min 29secs and was placed 10th Lady.

Croydon was the venue for the Southern Counties Masters Cross Country Championships in which in which two of the club’s more senior athletes proved that they can produce winning performances. Jane Clarke took the honours in the Over50 division while Robert Cheverton led the field home in the Over 55’s competition.

International honours are coming the way of the club’s endurance athletes. Iona Lake and Ashley Harrell will travel to Brussels this weekend where they will compete for England. Additionally Iona received an early Christmas present when hearing that she has gained her first Great Britain representative honour to compete in the triangular match against the USA and Europe Select. The event will take in Edinburgh early in the New Year.

Goose flies to glory despite jet lag

27 November 2011

For Mitch Goose the European Cross Country Trials held in a blustery Sefton Park, Liverpool proved to be a happy hunting ground on Saturday. Always in the forefront in flamboyant hair styles he led from front when seeking selection for the Great Britain Under 23 team that will be competing on Slovenia in two weeks time.

Competing over the rapidly drying 3 lap 10km course Goose was always in the leading group of athletes seeking selection and it was in the latter stages of the final lap that he made his move which took him to the front, a position he retained to the finish that guaranteed him a place in the Great Britain team. Goose, under instruction from UKA, was informed that he must return from his studies in the USA to be considered for team selection.  His decision to come back, arriving on Wednesday, has certainly been justified!

In the same race Ashley Harrell created the first of the club's hard luck stories. With the first six across the line to make the team for Slovenia he was the unlucky 7th finisher and finds himself in the position of first reserve

Hard luck story number two came the way of Iona Lake who was seeking Great Britain selection in the Under 20 team. Racing over 4.4km she was always well up the field and in contention for a spot in the team. Sadly, after a valiant effort she finished in 7th place to find herself in the same situation as Harrell, first reserve for the Great Britain team. In the Under 17 Girls race, Tasha Potgieter, also competing over 4.4km, we are yet to see the best however she dug deep to finish in 30th position. Alice Cheverton battled her way to a 33rd finishing position in the Under 15 Girls 3km race.

Under 17 Boy, Tom Hook's future in athletics looks bright. His confidence is gaining with every outing and this was confirmed when racing over 5.5km he finished in a close order 5th place in what was a quality field. Another youngster who is showing a great deal of promise is Under 13 Boy Alfie Linstead. Competing over 3km he finished in a praiseworthy 12th position and like Hook can look forward to further successes in the future.

Further north in Glasgow, the club's super veteran Jane Clarke was representing England in the Home Countries Masters Cross Country International. In atrocious conditions, wet and very windy, she was rewarded for her efforts in the Over 50 category with an individual silver medal and the added delight of leading England to team gold.

The club's red and gold stripes were also making their presence felt in Oxford. Nick Earl and Josh Entwistle competing in the Maylarch Eynsham 10km Road Race both produced personal best performances. Earl proved to be a worthy winner when, despite the very windy conditions, he recorded a time of 32min 02secs while in third spot Entwistle posted 32min 54secs knocking over two minutes of his previous best.

Iona Lake makes England XC debut in Burgos, Spain

8 November 2011

Endurance athletes from the Club competed far and near over the past weekend making their mark in Spain, the USA and locally at Shouldham Warren.

Drama preceded Iona Lake’s first cross country international appearance. Selected for England at Junior level she travelled to Burgos, northern Spain to compete on a typically flat continental course that included many twists and turns. The England team of four were in confident mood to take on the best that Spain could offer but Iona's mood changed to one of despair when she turned her ankle while warming up. However, prompt icing and some firm strapping got her to the start line for the 4km race. For the first of the two lap race the England team were grouped at the front but sadly for Iona the injury took its toll but she hung on to finish in 11th position with her team-mates filling 1st, 5th and 8th places. Iona had high hopes of a much higher finishing position so was disappointed not to have been able to achieve her goal although she has gained much from racing at international level.

Three of the club's endurance athletes - Ruth Senior, Hollie Rowland and Mitch Goose - are currently based in America where they are producing some excellent results against what is proving to be top quality opposition. Ruth Senior, based at New Mexico University and racing over 6km, came home in a pleasing 7th place in the Mountain Regional Championships held in Provo, Utah. In the North East Championships staged in Amherst, New York Hollie Rowland was a delighted 3rd place finisher in her 6km race while Mitch Goose competing over 10km displayed good form to finish 5th. These excellent results qualify all three for the National Collegiate Athletic Association Championships, the biggest and toughest race in the US calendar, which take place on Monday 21 November in Terre Haute, Indiana.

Much nearer to home at Shouldham Warren at the Ryston Runners Cross Country Grand Prix, club members produced some excellent results. With the older age groups all racing over 9km it was Martainn Ramsay who recorded 28min 44secs when winning the junior section from Damian Rogers. Veteran athlete Rini Hoogkamer took the over 50 honours when posting a time of 32min 20secs; the Over 60 category victor was Derry Kelleher timed at 34min 04secs while for the ladies Jane Clarke cruised to victory in the over 50 age group in a time of 34min 48secs. The first race of the day saw Caitlin Turner take the runners up spot in the Under 9 Girls race when timed at 3min 41secs for her effort over 800m. The Under 11 Boys had to compete over 2km and it was Tom Greenacre who proved he was on top form when winning in 7min 48secs. The Under 17 age groups raced over 4.5km; for the girls Hannah Wright was a comfortable winner in a fast 17min 11secs as was Scott Greeves for the boys when stopping the clock at 15min 11secs. A time of 9min 59secs was good enough for Ashley Waterson take the victors laurels in the 3km Under 15 Boys race.

CoNAC delight at National Cross Country Relays

8 November 2011

Within the winter competitive calendar the Saucony English Cross Country Relays do not come any tougher. These championship races are staged over a tried and tested course in Berry Hill Park, Mansfield and proved to be a great day for the Club’s athletes when they produced their best ever overall performance at the event, finishing five teams in top ten places and collecting two sets of national medals in the process.

Monsoon conditions prevailed for the senior men’s four stage race each of 5km distance in which the team made club history! Lead-off man Ashley Harrell (15min 36secs, the third fastest leg in the senior race) was in impressive form handing over to second leg athlete Tommy Carroll in a superb 3rd position. Carroll as always dug deep when recording a time of 16min 52secs to hold onto 8th place. Taking over Stuart Huntington produced arguably the best run of his life when clocking 16min 23secs to bring the team up to 2nd place. Ryan Saunders (16min 31secs) making his club debut was only overhauled in the final 400m but was delighted - as were his team mates - to secure team bronze for the quartet, the club's first ever medal in the championships at senior level.

Earlier in the day the junior ladies had proved that they are indeed a force to be reckoned with when taking team bronze.  Racing over three stages each of 2.5km, Iona Lake produced a cracking opening run when recording a time of 8min 43secs, the third fastest recorded on the day, to hand over to Juliet Broster in 2nd place. Juliet posted a time of 9min 38secs, a great effort that kept the team well in medal contention. Final leg athlete Claire Pring maintained the team's bronze medal status when completing her leg in 8min 57secs. Having mounted the podium to receive their bronze medals they subsequently found that they had been elevated to the silver medal position as the team finishing second (the mighty Aldershot, Farnham & District AC) had fielded an ineligible athlete and were subsequently disqualified.

They were just three seconds away from securing team bronze! 75 teams set off in the Under 13 Boys 3 stage race of 2km each leg.  The club's opening leg athlete Alfie Linstead (7min 23secs) passed the baton onto Jacob Cotton (7min 42secs) in 12th place who maintained the status quo for the team. A leg of 7min 05ses from Luke Spear, the third fastest overall on the day, proved to be an absolute cracker which brought the team home in fourth place and just outside the medals!

New recruit Alex Dunbar (9min 08secs) led off the Junior Men's trio each racing over 3km to hand over to Martainn Ramsey in 11th position. Martainn excelled on the second leg moving the team up to a high fifth place when recording 9min 17secs for his stint. Final leg athlete Damian Rogers (9min 43secs) gave of his all to bring the team home in a creditable 9th position.

Next up was the Under 17 Boys who each raced over 3km. Lead-off man Tom Hook (9min 14secs) came home in third place, a position maintained by Sean Watson (9min 34secs). And despite his very best endeavours 1st year Under 17 Scott Greeves (10min 03secs) had to succumb to older athletes on the final leg but still managed to bring the team home in a very creditable 6th place.

Megan Soanes (7min 33secs), Megan Bird (7min 56secs) and Alice Cheverton (8min 02secs) raced over 2km in the Under 15 Girls to came home in a pleasing 8th position. The senior ladies team of Olivia Walwyn (10min 54secs), Ellie Matthews (11min 32secs) and Kelly Rushton (11min 39secs) gave of their all to finish in 13th place; 104 teams competed in this race.

The Under 17 Girls team raced over 2.5km and mirrored the finishing place of the club's senior ladies. Mabel Beckett (9min 45secs), Anna Hoogkamer (10min 11secs) and Hannah Wright (9min 30secs) made up the hard working squad. For the Under 15 Boys competing over a 2km distance, Ashley Waterson (7min 12secs), Jamie Finch (7min 27secs) and Elliott Marina (7min 19secs) finished in 22nd place in a race where 80 teams completed.

With medals being won by the Senior Men and the Junior Ladies and the Under 13 Boys just missing out on a podium place plus impressive performances from the Under 17 Boys and the Under 15 Girls the future looks to be very promising for the club.

CoNAC dominates SEAA XC Relays

1 October 2011

Endurance athletes from the Club were again on their travels at the weekend.  Having recently missed out on gaining any medals in the South of England Road Relay Championships it proved to be very much a different story on Saturday at the South’s Cross Country Relay Championships.

Travelling to Biggleswade to compete, they returned home with a hatful of medals that included gold and silver team awards.  The Senior Ladies team of Kelly Rushton, Ellie Matthews and Jane Clarke produced a gold winning performance when leaving the opposition struggling to play catch-up throughout each of the 3km legs.   Not to be outdone the Under 20 Ladies team also made hay in sunshine with another gold winning performance.  Racing over 2.5km legs Esme Salmon, Juliet Broster and Grace Bird were delighted victors!

The team of Damian Rogers, Micah Rogers and Oliver Maskell competing over 3km legs produced a silver medal performance in the Under 20 Men’s event as did the Under 17 Boys squad.  Sean Watson, Scott Greeves and Callum Russell also racing over 3km legs teamed up well to secure silver.   Tasha Potgeiter led the Under 17 Girls team to a silver medal performance.  Racing over 2.5km legs she was ably backed by Mabel Beckett and Sophie Rock.

The club fielded two teams in the Under 15 Girls race over 2km legs but were disappointed to miss out on the medals; Megan Soanes, Katie Stratton and Megan Bird made up the team that were placed 4th while Ashleigh Bunn, Ellena Mae White and Elizabeth Cooper crossed the line in 5th position.

The Under 13 Boys team of Alfie Linstead, Jacob Cotton and Lewis Chalcraft racing over 2km finished in a creditable 6th position while the under 15 Boys team of Ashleigh Waterson, Jamie Finch and Adam Davison also competing over 2km finished a little higher up the pecking order when placed 5th. The Under 13 Girls team of Sophie Wright, Catherine Long and Sasha Dyke racing over 2km worked very hard, found the going tough, but still managed to finish in 7th position 

The next challenge for the club comes when they travel to Sutton Coldfield in two weeks time to compete in the National Road Relay Championships where the competition will be from the top drawer.

Silver lining for Iona Lake

22 March 2011

The English Schools Cross Country Championships staged at Wollaton Park, Nottingham proved to be a happy hunting ground for club athlete Iona Lake. Competing for Norfolk in the Senior Girls 4.1km race she proved that she has a bright future in the sport. West Yorkshire’s Jennifer Walsh, as is her usual practice took to the front from the gun opening up a nine second gap by the halfway point over the chasing pack that included Iona. Over the final kilometre Iona had moved into second place desperately trying to close the gap on the leader. Sadly it was not be and she had to be content with crossing the line in second place. Having set herself the target of a top five finish she was delighted to take silver in this her final English Schools Cross Country Championship before moving onto University.

In the same race Esme Salmon finished in 51st position, Juliet Broster 57th, and Alex McKibben 89th packing that helped the team finish in a respectable 8th place from the 44 competing teams. For the Intermediate Girls Hannah Wright was best place in a pleasing 36th position. Tasha Potgieter was 66th and Mabel Beckett 89th. An 8th place in the team result was pleasing result for the young squad.

In the Junior Boys race Ashley Waterson was the County’s best-placed finisher in 55th while Tom Hook in the Intermediate Boys competition crossed the line in 45th position. Sean Watson was 116th. First finisher for the County in the Senior Boys was Martainn Ramsay in 67th position followed home by Frazer Heasman in 100th.

Double gold for super vet Jane Clarke

22 March 2011

The club’s super veteran Jane Clarke has been very busy during the past week or so and we happy to report that her racing programme has produced two prestigious gold medals.

Her first success came in the British Masters Cross Country Championships held over a fast grassland course at Perry Park, Birmingham. From the downhill start Jane, competing in the Over 50 category, was always in the leading pack before pulling away from her nearest rival in the final lap of three to secure a comfortable victory. Gold No 1 in the bag!

She then had a couple of days at home before packing her bag to head off to Belgium to compete in the European Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships. Competing in the 3000m she again proved that she is at the top of her game when moving away from the field over the final 600m to secure an emphatic victory in a fast time of 10min 38.70secs. Gold No 2 secured!

For Jane the transition from cross-country to track in the space of a few days was achieved with aplomb, which confirmed that her varied training regime over the winter months has been the right course of action to achieve success in both disciplines.

It's gold for U13 Boys at Southern XC Relays

12 March 2011

At Wormwood Scrubs on Saturday our Under 13 Boys competed in the South of England Cross Country Relays and proved they are a force to be reckoned with when cruising to a comfortable victory.

Ashley Waterson on the opening leg put the team in pole position. Jamie Finch increased the lead over the second leg, which left Adam Davison to complete the glory leg and bring the team home victorious.

Waterson shines once again at the Inter Counties XC

7 March 2011

The past weekend saw many club members making their way to Cofton Park, Birmingham for the World Cross Country Trials that incorporated the Inter Counties Cross-Country Championships. The majority were representing Norfolk plus two for Suffolk and even one for Cheshire.

Once again Ashley Waterson was challenging for a podium place in the Under 13 Boys 3000m race. Always up with the leaders throughout, on this occasion, despite a valiant effort, he had to settle for third place. He has had a remarkable cross-county season and still has the opportunity to finish it on a high when he competes, in two weeks time, for Norfolk in the English Schools Cross-Country Championships. In the same race Alfie Linstead (122nd) and Adam Davison (135th) helped make up the scoring team for Norfolk. Jamie Finch representing Suffolk came 132nd.

Iona Lake was the Norfolk’s sole representative in the Under 20 Ladies 6000m race. With an outside chance of making the top six for a place in GB team for the World Cross-Country Championships but in the face of some very strong opposition she had to be satisfied with a finishing spot of 9th. On the plus side she has still two further years in the junior women's category so international honours should be coming her way sooner of later!

Norfolk’s best team result came in the Under 17 Girls race. Competing over 5000m Esme Salmon in 53rd place was the county’s first counter. Tasha Potgieter was just behind her in 56th position while Juliet Broster 82nd closed in for the Norfolk team who finished in a respectable 13th position. Alice Cheverton wearing the Suffolk colours in the Under 15 Girls 4000m race came home in 88th place.

Scott Greeves was the best placed Under 15 Boy. Racing over 4500m he finished in 42nd place. Competing in the Under 17 Boys 6000m race Martainn Ramsay completed in 52nd place while Tom Hook got out of his comfort zone to finish in 117th position.

In the senior races Hollie Rowland competing over 8000m continues to display better form when finishing in 23rd position. Olivia Walwyn representing Cheshire as always worked hard for her finishing spot of 36th. For the men Stuart Huntington was first scorer in 62nd place. Carl Goose made it across the line in 102nd place.

Many of the club’s junior members will soon be on their travels again when they compete for Norfolk in the English Schools Cross Country Championships that will be held in Wollaton Park Nottingham on Saturday 19 March.

Mud is the real winner at National XC Championships

21 February 2011

Alton Towers, Saturday’s venue for the “Saucony” English National Cross Country Championships had as many ups and downs as the nearby theme park plus the added ingredient of glutinous mud. Friday night’s heavy rain reduced the course and surrounds to a total quagmire, which didn’t suit a vast number of the competitors proving that on the day it would be a case of “horses for courses”.

First off for the Club in the 10 race programme were the Under 17 Girls team who competed over 5km. They ran in the best of the rapidly deteriorating conditions in which Esme Salmon led the squad home in 48th position. Tasha Potgieter finished 65th closely followed by Juliet Broster in 70th position. The hard working Alex McKibben closed in for the team in 124th place. Their overall efforts earned them a respectable 8th place in the team competition.

Junior Lady Iona Lake, racing over 6km was one club athlete who appeared to relish the underfoot conditions. Over the demanding two-lap course she skipped through the mud to finish highly placed in 11th in a race won by the European Junior Champion Charlotte Purdue. Iona’s future looks bright and she can look forward to even better results as she has two more years in the same age group.

In conditions that they had never previously encountered the Under 13 Girls team found the going extremely tough. Megan Bird (53rd), Catherine Broster (178th), Georgina Matthews (188th) and Ellena White (293rd) made up the squad that finished 25th in the team competition. The club’s Under 15 Girls sadly were not able to finish a scoring team but Alice Cheverton (102nd), Lorna McGrath (110th) and Katie Stratton (179th) gave it their best shot in the very sticky conditions. Scott Greeves, competing in the Under 15 Boys 6km also found the going tough but stuck to the task to finish in 55th position.

By mid-afternoon the atrocious conditions forced the organisers, due to health and safety recommendations, to revise the course and race distances. First to suffer from the changes implemented was Ashley Waterson who was strongly fancied to win the Under 13 Boys 3km Championship. None of the Under 13 competitors at the start of their race were totally aware of the new course and distance and as a consequence Waterson was caught adrift of the leading pack when entering, what had become the home straight, after racing only 2km. He was bitterly disappointed to finish in 6th place in a field of 330 finishers. Alfie Linstead (90th), Jamie Finch (96th) and Adam Davison (147th) made up the scoring team, which was placed 8th in the final rankings.

The club’s best team performance came in the Senior Ladies Championship the race distance being reduced by 2km to 6km that excluded all the hilly sections. Entering the race as South of England Champions hope was high for the team to take a medal. Hollie Rowland completed in 21st position with Olivia Walwyn in close attendance in 24th spot. Dani Nimmock despite a heavy cold hung on right to the line to finish in 60th while Kelly Rushton battled against the elements to cross the line in 122nd place. It was self evident that the medal opportunity had slipped them by and at the final count the ladies had to settle for a creditable 5th place in the team competition.

Due to injuries and university commitments the Senior Men were very thin on the ground. Luke Allen who was delighted to finish in a high 46th position while a little further back Stuart Huntington suffered in the mud but still managed to finish in 64th place. It is worth noting that 1302 athletes completed the reduced distance race.

In two weeks time the club’s athletes will be competing for Norfolk and Suffolk in the Inter County Cross Country Championships that will take place in Birmingham hopefully over a relatively mud free course!

Gold for Ashley and two CoNAC teams at Southern XC

30 January 2011

Frequently referred to as the home of English cross-country running, Parliament Hill Field in Hampstead Heath proved to be a happy hunting ground for CoNAC at the weekend. Competing in the Saucony South of England Championships staged on Saturday the club’s athletes produced many excellent personal and team performances in this the first major cross-country championship of the winter season.

Conditions underfoot varied from firm to glutinous mud but this made no different to Ashley Waterson. Competing in the Under 13 Boys 3km race he continued his impressive winning streak. With 400m to the line and placed third his superb sprint over the final 200m saw him take gold by the narrow margin of a metre. With Alfie Linstead finishing in 44th position, Jamie Finch 52nd despite a badly cut leg and Adam Davison 72nd there was a nail biting wait to see if the team had stolen the bronze medals from Aldershot Farnham & District AC. Concern turned to broad smiles as their third place finish was confirmed.

Esme Salmon when finishing in a splendid 12th place in the Under 17 Girls 5km race led her team to a gold winning performance. Tasha Potgieter who is a first year Under 17 confirmed her battling qualities when finishing in 23rd place. Juliet Broster as always dug deep to finish in 27th spot, as did tri-athlete Alex McKibben who crossed the line in 33rd position. With a total points score of 95 the competition for gold could not have been closer as they overcame Bracknell AC by just the one point.

Despite Kelly Ruston’s late cry off due to illness the Senior Ladies team racing over 8km still looked a strong outfit. Hollie Rowland had just returned to the fold from her home base in Germany and Olivia Walwyn had travelled down from Macclesfield to compete. Dani Nimmock and super veteran Jane Clarke made up the team that set out their stall to win medals and they did not disappoint. It was a delighted Hollie Rowland who took the individual bronze in fine style followed home by Olivia Walwyn finished in a fine 7th place. Dani Nimmock never too happy in the mud still finished in a high 12th position. The pressure was then on Jane Clarke, running in the knowledge that she had to battle for every place in order for the team to close in a sufficiently low score to take gold. A battling final position of 53rd ensured that the team filled the top spot on the podium and once again it was smiling all round.

The Under 15 Girls team competing over 4km worked extremely hard to complete in a creditable 13th place. Emily Hoogkamer 35th, Alice Cheverton 68th, Lorna Mcgrath 82nd and Katie Stratton 111th made up the scoring four. The Under 13 Girls quartet also completed their 3km race in 13th position. Megan Bird 58th, Sophie Wright 73rd, Catherine Broster 76th and Georgina Matthews 157th made up the scoring four. Iona Lake was the only club competitor in the Under 20 Ladies 6km race in which she finished in a highly promising 7th position.

The Senior Men had to complete 15km in their demanding three-lap race. Luke Allen was the club’s first man home in 35th place followed across the line by 800m-track athlete Rick Ward in 109th position. Josh Entwistle wasn’t at his happiest in the mud when finishing 119th spot while Nick Earl battled against a knee injury to finish in 140th position. 885 competitors completed the gruelling course with 93 clubs finishing scoring teams.

Please click here to view the individual results on the Power of 10 website and here to view the team results.

CoNAC-ers on song Stateside

30 January 2011

Such is the wealth of young athletic talent in Norfolk that American Universities are constantly importing our homegrown athletes across the water with more than a degree of success.

James McLachlan is proving his worth to Loyala University, Chicago when competing indoors at Bloomington, Indiana where he won the Long Jump with a season’s best 7m25. Fellow club member Ruth Senior was also treading the indoor boards in Albuquerque. Competing for New Mexico University she produced a new personal indoor best over 3000m when recording an impressive winning 9in 31.16secs.

Endurance club mate Mitch Goose based at Iona University, New York tested himself in what he termed as a “rust busting” 3000m in Boston. Somewhat inexperienced on the indoor boards he was pleased to produce and new personal best indoor and outdoors when recording 8min 10.79secs, a time that knocked almost nine seconds of his previous best.

Ashley Waterson continues rich vein of form

17 January 2011

The club’s endurance athletes were out and about over the weekend. A small group made their way to Cardiff to compete in Sunday’s McCain UK Cross Challenge. Ashley Waterson continues to impress nationally when storming to a comfortable win in the Under 13 Boys race. Jamie Finch in the same race was a delighted eighth place finisher.

Ashley Harrell produced a great run in the Senior Men’s race when finishing in an excellent third position, which arguably was his best performance since moving into the senior ranks. Sadly his success was soured as he picked up, during the course of the race, a nasty foot injury. He is now sidelined for the time being and has to wear a “support boot” for the next week or so. We wish him a speedy recovery. Happily Luke Allen came away unscathed from the race having worked hard for his 27th finishing position.

Tom Hook competing in the Under 17 Boys event came home in 12th place, a result that should give him a confidence boost for the season ahead. Ashleigh Bunn in the Under 13 Girls race gave of her all to cross the line in 61st position.

Sunday’s Ryston Grand Prix series as is always the case proved to be a popular outing for many of our cross-country athletes. Tom Greenacre started the victory ball rolling with a confident win in the Under 11 Boys race. Another confident winner was Adam Davison who was followed home by Alfie Linstead in the Under 13 Boys race. In the Under 13 Girls contest Megan Bird held on to finish in 3rd place while in the Under 15 Boys race Callum Russell managed a creditable runners-up position. Emily Hoogkamer went one better in the Under 15 Girls competition and in the Under 17 Girls race there was a clean sweep for the club when Esme Salmon who is running into a rich vein of form led home Alex McKibben, Mabel Beckett, Anna Hoogkamer and Grace Bird.

Damian Rogers proved to be a comfortable victor in the Junior Men’s race and it was a delighted Ellie Matthews who crossed the line first in the Senior Ladies race. The club’s older generation athletes proved their worth with Jane Clarke (over 45) taking the winners plaudits from Gill Loughlin. Harry Knowles was delighted to record a win in the Over 55 division while Rini Hoogkamer on this occasion had to settle for the runners-up place in the Over 50 division.

CoNAC-ers hit the Gold standard at County XC Champs

10 January 2011

CoNAC athletes picked up a hatful of medals, mostly of the golden variety, at Sunday’s Norfolk County Cross-Country Championships staged at Colney Lane. Perfect racing conditions prevailed, crisp and sunny with the course in most parts firm underfoot.

A double gold performance came in the combined 1.7km Under 11’s race. Tom Greenacre showed a clean pair of heels to his fellow competitors as did Sophie Bishop in the Girls race both crossing the line comfortable winners.

In the Under 13 Girls 3.5km race Sophie Wright, Megan Bird and Catherine Broster packed well in fifth, sixth and seventh places respectively to tie up the team award ahead of Great Yarmouth & District AC. Under 13 Boy Ashley Waterson racing over the same distance stormed to victory while Adam Davison, third and Alfie Linstead, fifth, made sure that team gold was secured.

Emily Hoogkamer racing over 4km in the Under 15 Girls competition took the winner’s laurels by over a minute while Katie Stratton worked hard to take the bronze medal. Also racing over 4km Under 15 Boy Scott Greeves displayed top form to take gold. With Bradley Stansbury and Bruce Beckett filling fourth and fifth places made sure yet another team gold for CoNAC.

Esme Salmon impressed in the Under 17 Girls 6km race to take the County title and together with Tasha Potgieter and Juliet Broster filled the first three places to make sure the trio carried off the team gold. In the Under 17 Boys 6km race the squad of Martainn Ramsay, Tom Hook and Sean Watson also conspired to fill the first three places that ensured team gold was added to the club’s impressive collection.

It was the same story in the Senior Ladies 6km race. Dani Nimmock dominated the proceedings while track specialist Rachel Stringer stuck to her task to take silver. Ellie Matthews took bronze that made sure of team gold for the Ladies. Iona Lake without the benefit of a team around proved to be an easy winner in the Under 20 Ladies 6km race. The club’s Lady Masters made their mark on the proceedings when tying up a fine team victory. Jane Clarke took the individual honours and was ably backed by Tessa Pike, third and Gillian Loughlin who came home in sixth position.

Damian Rogers and Alec Beaney battled it out over 8km in the Under 20 Men’s race with Damian just prevailing over the final 400 metres. With Damian’s twin brother Micah securing a battling fifth position once again a club team mounted the top of the rostrum.

Senior representation was thin on the ground in the championships and it was left to Rini Hoogkamer racing over 9.2km in the Masters division to secure the individual silver medal.

Goose appointed as GB U23 captain

1 January 2011

CoNAC athlete Mitch Goose has been appointed Captain of the Great Britain Under 23 cross-country team that will compete in the Bupa Great Edinburgh International being staged in Holyrood Park on 8 January.

Goose is absolutely delighted to be appointed as Great Britain’s Captain. He will be in very good company as double European Track champion Mo Farah is the Senior Men’s captain while Sergiy Lebid, nine times European cross-country champion is captain of the European team.

Club mate Ashley Harrell will be joining Goose in the Great Britain Under 23 team in what will surely prove to be a testing race for the youngsters over the tough 8km course.

Straightaway after the race Goose will be heading back to America to continue his studies at Iona University in New York.

Disappointment for Mitch and Ashley in Portugal

17 December 2010

Disappointment understates the feelings of both Mitch Goose and Ashley Harrell following their efforts for Great Britain in the European Cross Country Championships held in Acoteias, Portugal.

The Great Britain Under 23 team were a sound pre-race bet to take team gold but when first out of the pen James Wilkinson (Leeds City AC) dropped out in the early stages feeling decidedly unwell the odds lengthened considerably. Ricky Stevenson (New Maske Harriers) was the only team member up with the leading pack with Mitch and Ashley a little off the pace with the intention of moving though the field as the race progressed. Sadly this did not materialise as Mitch, fifth placed last year, only managed a modest 22nd finishing position while Ashley finished in a lowly 68th place. Their disappointment was further compounded when the team failed to medal finishing in fourth place.

Mitch, an experienced international, in his post-race comments, admitted to “having messed up” when giving the course and his fellow competitors too much respect. Ashley is yet to establish himself at international level and is aware that he performed below expectations.

Both Mitch and Ashley will be looking to produce the form of which they are capable when they will again represent Great Britain in Edinburgh early in the New Year.

Goose & Harrell to earn GB vests at European XC Champs

30 November 2010

What a weekend it proved to be for three of the club’s cross-country athletes who competed in the Liverpool staged McCain Cross Challenge that incorporated the trials for the European Cross Country Championships which will themselves take place in Albufeira, Portugal on Sunday 12 December.

For Mitch Goose it was a particularly stressful time. Currently based at Iona University, he had failed to shine sufficiently in the American Universities Championships held over the previous weekend to assure himself of a place in the Great Britain Under 23 team for the European Championships. A flight home was quickly organised arriving back in the UK on Wednesday evening followed by a drive up to Liverpool on Friday. Unfazed by the drama Goose proceeded to produce a superb run over the 9.8km Sefton Park course to finish in third spot, a position that guaranteed his place in the GB team.

Ashley Harrell - currently in the form of his life - had no wish to be left out of the GB party travelling to Portugal for the championships and his brave sixth place served to grab him the final slot for the GB team. Goose and Harrell were both GB squad members last year in the team that gained silver in Dublin. In the same race Stuart Huntington came home in 18th position while Luke Allen, returning from injury, made it across the line in 24th place.

In the years ahead, young Ashley Waterson will be looking to match the performances of his senior club mates. Racing over 3km he showed a mature racing brain. Always with the leading pack throughout he made his move for glory with just 100m to go. Lying in 4th place he put in a sprint that took him to the front, a position he comfortably maintained to finish. It was certainly a performance out of the top drawer. Adam Davison and Jamie Finch in the same race finished in 29th and 33rd places respectively.

In the Under 15 Boys race Scott Greeves was the club’s best performer when placed 24th. Darryl Broughton crossed the line in 88th position while in the Under 15 Girls competition Megan Soanes finished in a high 15th place and was followed home by Alice Cheverton in 27th spot and Katie Stratton in 59th position.

Dani Nimmock racing over 8km in the Under 23 Ladies race managed a creditable 10th position and in the Under 20 Ladies race Iona Lake displayed a much better competitive edge when finishing in 19th position. Tom Hook’s 31st finishing spot placed him well inside the top third of the Under 17 Boys field.

Goose and Harrell now depart for Albufeira on 10 December with the declared aim of going for gold!

Waterson is a record breaker

14 November 2010

On Sunday, three of the club’s young flyers made their mark when filling the first three places in their race at Ryston Runners Cross Country Grand Prix Series staged at Shouldham Warren.

Ashley Waterson, Jamie Finch and Adam Davison who last week missed out on winning bronze team medals at the National Cross Country Relays made up a little for their acute disappointment when dominating the Under 13 Boys 3km race. Waterson crossed the line a worthy winner in a new record time of 10min 07secs. Jamie Finch who posted a time of 10min 53secs with Adam Davison registering 11min 09secs for his third place finish followed him home. Sophie Wright, placed third, was the club’s top finisher in the Under 13 Girls 3km race in a time of 12min 12secs.

The club’s Under 17 Girls also made their presence felt. Racing over 4.5km Natasha Potgieter 17min 42secs, Mabel Beckett 17min 50secs, Juliette Broster 18min 01secs and Anna Hoogkamer 18min 54secs made it a clean sweep when filling the first five places. For the Under 17 Boys Jack Harrison was a resounding winner over the 4.5km course finishing more than a minute ahead of the runner up in a time of 15min 59secs. Megan Soames competing in the Under 15 Girls 3km race also proved to be a worthy victor in a time of 11min 21secs.

The Senior and Junior competitors had to race over 9km. Undaunted by the distance Steve Cannell took the Senior race in 29min 21secs but was led home by Junior winner Damian Rogers who recorded 29min 09secs for his stint. James Senior was the second junior to cross the line in 29min 49secs. Emma Sharples made hay of the opposition in the Senior Ladies 9km race when finishing strongly in a very pleasing 31min 59secs.

The club’s older generation athletes were pleased to post two individual wins over their 9km course. Derry Kelleher won the Veteran Over 60 race in a time of 33min 35secs while in the Ladies Over 45 race Jane Clarke, on her return to competition after injury, won in 34min 58secs ahead of teammate Louise Wilkinson.

Ashley Junior and Ashley Senior star in National Relays

6 November 2010

As always the National Cross Country Relay Championships staged in Mansfield on Saturday proved to be a great day for athletics and athletes alike. Berry Hill Park was blessed with perfect racing conditions for the event at which all the major clubs were represented. Our athletes were out in force with teams competing in all of the ten races on the programme.

The club’s best result came in the Under 13 Boys 3 x 2km event in which the team missed out on the bronze medal by the smallest of margins. Lead of man Ashley Waterson recorded the second fastest time on the day, 6min 51secs, handing over to Jamie Finch in second place who maintained that position throughout his stint. Adam Davison produced a super effort on the final leg hanging onto third place right up to the line put was just caught in the final stride. Missing out on a medal was a huge disappointment for the club’s young squad but they can surely look forward to great success in the future.

The Junior Ladies team of Iona Lake, Alex McKibben and Claire Pring racing over 2.5km legs produced a solid result when finishing in a high 6th place. The Junior Men’s team of Jordan Ali, James Senior and James Jackson finished down in 20th position when expectations were for a place in the top ten.

The Senior Men’s team racing over 4 legs each of 5km caused a bit of a stir for three of the four stages. Ashley Harrell displayed a new found confidence when leading the opening stage until the final 50metres handing over to Tommy Carroll in third spot. Carroll lost just one place before handing over to Stuart Huntington who maintained the club’s high position. 800 metre track specialist Rick Ward took on the final leg but despite his best efforts was unable to preserve the situation dropping back to finish in 13th place. With 140 teams finishing the race it was a pleasing performance but future expectations are high with hopes that in the not too distant future the team will medal at senior level.

Dani Nimmock produced a good solid performance on the open leg for the Senior Ladies team handing to Kelly Rushton in 9th position. It was a rare appearance for Kelly who acquitted herself very well to keep the team in 12th position for the final 3km leg. Drafted in at the eleventh hour due to a late cry-off veteran athlete Louise Wilkinson who joined the club’s endurance squad way back in 1985 stuck to her guns to bring the team home in 25th place.

Summary of the club’s results:

Under 13 Girls - 3 x 2km
Team - Megan Bird 8min 09secs, Ellena White 8min 52secs, Ashleigh Bunn 9min 39secs - Finishing position 64th; 89 teams completed

Under 13 Boys - 3 x 2km
Team - Ashley Waterson 6min 51secs (2nd fastest leg overall), Jamie Finch 7min 28secs, Adam Davison 7min 23secs - Finishing position 4th; 70 teams completed

Under 15 Girls - 3 x 2km
Team - Megan Soames 7min 38secs, Katie Stratton 8min 33secs, Alice Cheverton 7min 46secs - Finishing position 26th; 88 teams completed

Under 15 Boys - 3 x 2km
“A” Team - Scott Greeves 6min 34secs (10th fastest leg overall), Callum Russell 7min 06secs, Aaron Pitt 7min 42secs - Finishing position 29th; 88 teams completed
“B” Team - Bradley Stansbury 7min 44secs, Daryll Broughton 7min 50secs, Bruce Beckett 7min 56secs - Finishing position 83rd

Under 17 Girls - 3 x 2.5km
Team - Grace Bird 10min 21secs, Kiera Mooney 10min 04secs, Juliet Broster 9min 43secs - Finishing position 28th; 54 teams completed

Under 17 Boys - 3 x 3km
Team - Tom Hook 9min 50secs, Sean Watson 9min 59secs, Martainn Ramsay 9min 48secs - Finishing position 20th; 84 teams completed

Junior Ladies - 3 x 2.5km
Team - Iona Lake 9min 05secs, Alex McKibben 10min 04secs, Claire Pring 9min 18secs - Finishing position 6th; 24 teams completed

Junior Men - 3 x 3km
“A” Team - Jordan Ali 9min 27secs, James Senior 9min 27secs, James Jackson 9min 46secs - Finishing position 20th; 55 teams completed
“B” team - Damian Rogers 9min 47secs, Ben Stratton 9min 48secs, Frazer Heasman 10min 04secs - Finishing position 37th

Senior Ladies - 3 x 3km
Team - Dani Nimmock 10min 28secs, Kelly Rushton 11min 00secs, Louise Wilkinson 12min 44secs - Finishing position 25th; 84 teams completed

Senior Men - 4 x 5km
“A” Team - Ashley Harrell 15min 08secs (6th fastest leg overall), Tommy Carroll 15min 44secs, Stuart Huntington 15min 46secs, Rick Ward 16min 52secs - Finishing position 13th; 140 teams completed
“B” Team - Nick Earl 17min 03secs, Luke Allen 16min 39secs, Josh Entwistle 17min 17secs, Steve Cannell 17min 34secs - Finishing position 48th

Ashley sets new standard as XC season kicks off

10 October 2010

The first of the six race series of the Ryston Runners Cross Country Grand Prix held on Sunday at Shouldham Warren proved to be a happy hunting ground for those competing club athletes.

Ashley Waterson set the standard when creating a new course record in the Under 13 Boys race. He covered the 3km course in a very impressive 10min 16secs knocking 4 seconds of the previous record. In the same race Jamie Finch came home a comfortable runner up. In the Under 13 Girls competition over the same distance Sophie Wright, Megan Bird and Catherine Broster packed well to finish in third, fourth and fifth places respectively.

The club’s winning sequence was continued in the Under 15 Boys 3km race with Scott Greeves proving to be a comfortable victor while in the Under 15 Girls 3km race it was a close run affair. Megan Soames and Emily Hoogkamer battled it out all the way to the line with Megan just gaining the victors laurels by a mere second.

Anna Hoogkamer racing over 5km in the Under 17 Girls race added to the club’s victories when recording a satisfying win ahead of club mate Grace Bird. In the Under 17 Boys 5km race Tom Hook filled the runners up position with Sean Watson and Jack Harrison following him across the line in third and fourth places.

In the Senior and Junior Men’s 5km race run concurrently it was the club’s colours that headed the field throughout. 800metre track star Rick Ward and junior athlete Damian Rogers were neck and neck heading into the home straight 100metres and could not be separated at the finish both being credited with a time 16min 21secs. Steve Cannell came home second in the senior category while Frazer Heasman making a welcome return to competition after injury slotted into second place in the junior race.

In the “golden oldies” 5km competitions Gillian Loughlin scored an impressive win the Ladies Over 45 category while in the Men’s Over 50 division Rini Hoogkamer was a close order runner up.

At the weekend the club will be travelling to the Midlands to compete in the National Road Relays Championships staged in Sutton Park over Saturday and Sunday. For sure the competition will be out of the top drawer.

Goose & Harrell earn further international honours

12 April 2010

International cross-country recognition has come the way in recent time for two of the club's rising stars, namely Ashley Harrell and Mitch Goose.

In late March Ashley Harrell made his senior debut in the England vest when selected to compete in the Home Countries Cross Country International staged over the undulating Berry Hill Park course in Mansfield. Racing over 10km the final team result proved to be a close run thing with England just getting the nod over Scotland. Ashley closed in the England team when finishing in a pleasing 7th place, just two positions ahead of the final Scottish athlete. With both teams scoring 13pts England secured team gold on count back.

Mitch Goose added another name to his list of countries visit in pursuit of his sport. Having finished 3rd in the British Universities Cross Country Championships he gained automatic selection to compete for Great Britain in the World University Championships that were held in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. As one would expect the competition proved to be a tough call with Japan and Spain fighting it out for team gold. Team GB stuck to their task with Mitch finishing 21st, a position that he was not totally happy with but his disappointment was somewhat tempered as the Brits pushed Canada down into fourth place to take the bronze medals.

Both Harrell and Goose can look back on a very satisfying cross-country season and hope that they can now replicate their excellent form on the track and road during the course of the coming summer months.

Masters just shaded out of medals

13 March 2010

It was a case of Masters to the fore at the weekend when four of the club’s older generation athletes made their way to Trent Park, Cockfosters to compete in the Southern Counties Masters Cross Country Championships. As expected they gave it their best shot in an endeavour to secure a set of team medals but sadly just missed out when placed 5th overall in the 50 – 69 age category.

Nevertheless Robert Cheverton, never one to shirk a challenge, produced an excellent over the undulating 10km course to finish highly placed in 4th position. Harry Knowles crossed the line in 30th place while just one second adrift and making up the scoring three was Rini Hoogkamer in 31st position.

Derry Kelleher competing as an individual in the 60 – 64 age category gave a very good account himself to finish in 4th place.

Senior Men save the day at the National

3 March 2010

Saturday’s long trip to Leeds for the National Cross Country Championships, despite the valiant efforts of those competing, results overall proved to be a little disappointing. Injuries and illness reduced the club’s firepower considerably; the end result being that we failed to “close in” teams in a number of the age categories.

However, it was not all gloom and despondency as the Senior Men’s team even without their international duo Mitch Goose and Ashley Harrell managed to finish in a very creditable 14th place in a race that 107 teams completed. Competing over a tough 12km course which included negotiating the infamous 3 in 1 “Hill 60” three times in the course of the race, it was Stuart Huntington who led the team home when finishing in a pleasing 52nd place. Veteran Wayne Lincoln gave a very good account of himself when placed 122nd and was closely followed by Luke Allen in 127th position. Nick Earl worked hard throughout to finish in 182nd place with Jonny Quint coming home in 215th position. Closing in for the scoring six Wayne Utting crossed the line in 278th position his best ever run in the National. 1328 athletes finished the race!

On a point of interest Jonny Quint, who is employed by the race sponsors Saucony, was up at the crack of dawn on race day helping his team brand the course and immediately post race was helping them gather in the banners. So, should his commitment to the cause be classified as devotion beyond the call of duty or just madness?

The Under 13 Girls team finished in 19th position comfortably inside the top half in a race in which 51 teams completed. Alice Cheverton gauged her race well to finish in a pleasing 31st place. Megan Soames after a promising start slipped back a little to finish in 91st place while Katie Stratton dug deep to complete in 162nd spot. Megan Bird made up the scoring four and finished in 195th position. Sadly the Under 15 Girls did not finish a team in which Nastassja Potgeiter ran a fine race to finish a highly placed 37th. It was the same story with the Under 17 Girls with only two representatives from the club completing. Juliet Broster finished in 70th place with Esme Salmon close on her tail in 75th position.

The Under 17 Boys team finished in 13th position with Ben Stratton leading the way to the finish in 64th spot and was followed home by 85th placed Frazer Heasman. Tom Francis completed in 150th position and Jack Harrison making up the scoring four in 271st place. Sadly with Tommy Carroll having to drop out mid race with an Achilles problem the Junior Men’s team failed to close in a team. Twins Damian and Micah Rogers finished 130th and 158th respectively while James Senior made it across the line in 164th place.

The next date on the cross-country calendar is the Inter-Counties combined with the trials for the World Championships, which will take place on Saturday 13th March in Birmingham. Many of the club’s athletes throughout the age groups will be representing Norfolk on that day.

Golden oldies produce some fine performances

16 February 2010

A Sunday morning spent in West Norfolk proved to be a successful outing five Club members representing the “older generation” athletes. They were competing in the Ryston Runners Cross-Country Grand Prix staged in the woodlands of Shouldham Warren. With all the senior and veteran athletes racing over 9km Lyn Emmett comfortably won the Ladies Over 35 division while in the Ladies Over 45 race Louise Wilkinson proved to be a cut above rest crossing the line almost three minutes ahead of her nearest rival. It was a different story in the Men’s Over 60 competition in which Derry Kelleher just held off Norfolk Gazelles Kevin Youngs to snatch victory. Harry Knowles left the competition trailing in his wake when securing victory in the Men’s Over 55 Division. Rini Hoogkamer on this occasion had to settle for the runners up position in the Men’s Over 50 race. Andy Bunn having recently acquired the status of veteran athlete made his mark in the Men’s Over 40 competition when finishing in a respectable third place.

For the Senior Men, James O’Neill and Ollie Maskell competing as an Under 20 produced solid performances when both finished second in their respective 9km races.

Not to be overshadowed by their senior club members Iona Lake notched up a convincing win in the Ladies Under 17 4.5km race as did Ben Stratton in the Men’s Under 17 race over the same distance. It was a case of one, two, three in the Under 15 Girls race. Competing over 3km Natassja Potgieter, Mabel Beckett and Anna Hoogkamer were dominant when securing the first three places. Callum Russell and Bradley Stansbury worked hard in the Under 15 Boys 3km race to secure third and fourth places respectively.

In the 3km Under 13 Boys race Ashley Waterson proved to be a worthy winner with club mate Adam Davison securing a comfortable second place. In the Under 13 Girls 3km race Megan Bird finished fifth while Ashleigh Bunn came home in seventh position. The Under 11 Girls competed over 2km in which Catherine Longe secured second position and Sophie Wright managed a creditable fourth place.

On Saturday 20 February there will be cross-country training session supported by England Athletics that will take place in Earlham Park, Norwich. Coaches and athletes are welcome to attend for what will be an informal get together plus the opportunity to do a tough training session. Anyone interested in coming along should meet at the Earlham Park café at 10.30am.

Cross country capers in the mud

12 February 2010

Many club members were out and about over last weekend. Stirling hosted the British Universities Cross Country Championships while a little nearer to home Hitchingbrooke School near Huntingdon staged the Anglian Schools Cross-Country Championships.

Mitch Goose representing St Mary’s University College helped them take team gold when finishing in an excellent third place in the long course race. This despite a niggling heel injury! Ashley Harrell still on the road recovery after injury worked hard to finish in 34th position and can now look forward to getting a solid block of training done. In the short course event Tommie Carroll was cheered by his fellow students to an excellent third finishing position. Stuart Huntington was pleased to cross the line highly placed in seventh while Carl Goose was a delighted tenth, a sign that bodes well for the track season ahead.

There were a number of high place finishers at the Anglian Schools Cross Country Championship in which club members were representing Norfolk and neighbouring Suffolk. Claire Pring took the top honours when winning the Senior Girls race with Iona Lake finishing a close order second. Juliette Knights finished in 9th position. Top finisher in the Minor Boys race was Ashley Waterson who was delighted to fill third place. Mirroring Ashley’s spot in the Junior Girls race was Megan Soanes representing Suffolk. Emily Hoogkamer wearing the Norfolk vest came home seventh closely followed by Alice Cheverton (Suffolk) in eighth position.

Close packing in the Inter Girls race ensured that Norfolk took the team title. Nastassja Potgeiter crossed the line in second place followed by Esme Salmon (6th), Alex McGibbon (9th) Juliet Broster (13th) Mabel Beckett (14th) and finally Anna Hoogkamer (15th). In the Senior Boys race Ben Stratton was best placed finisher in seventh position.

For many, they will soon learn if they have been selected to compete for their respective counties at the English Schools Cross-Country Championships to be held in Manchester on 20 March.

Claire Pring back on song

18 January 2010

Now that the snow has at last cleared the club’s athletes got back in business over the weekend. The club’s cross-country programme recommenced in South Wales and nearer to home at Shouldham Warren.

Claire Pring made the long trip to Cardiff to compete in the Junior Ladies race in the McCain Cross Challenge. Racing over a fast flat course in the grounds of Cardiff castle that surprisingly held firm after the past two weeks appalling weather she proved that she is back to her best form when finishing runner up to Bristol and West AC’s Annabel Gummow. It is pleasing to see Claire back on song after a torrid time battling against injury so we look forward to seeing her post further excellent performances as the cross-country season progresses. With a 110 finishers in the Under 15 Boys race Tom Hook displayed excellent form and he can draw considerable confidence from his 13th finishing position.

Other of the club’s endurance athletes made their way across the county to Shouldham Warren for the Ryston Runners Cross-Country Grand Prix in which they produced some excellent results. Catherine Longe and Sophie Wright set the standard in the Under 11 Girls 2km race when filling the first two places with Lauren Stansbury crossing the line in fourth place. Alfie Linstead made his mark in the Under 11 Boys 2km race when cross in the line with an eight second winning advantage. In the Under 13 Boys 3km race Ashley Waterson and Bruce Beckett slotted into second and third positions while in the Girls Under 13 race also over 3km Megan Soanes posted a comfortable victory over her chasing rivals.

Natasha Potgieter, Emily Hoogkamer, Mabel Beckett and Anna Hoogkamer made it a clean sweep for the City club in the Under 15 Girls 3km race while in the under 15 Boys 3km race Callum Russell worked hard for his third finishing position. The Under 17 age group raced over 5km and it was Alex Mckibben and Juliette Broster who filled the first two places in the Girls race. Ben Stratton and Jack Harrison mirrored their positions in the Boys race Damian Rogers showed his twin brother Micah a clean pair of heels in the Junior Men’s 5km race when winning in fine style

The club’s veteran athletes also made their mark with Rini Hoogkamer winning the Over 50 division, Derry Kelleher the Over 60 and evergreen Jane Clarke the Ladies Over 45 division with Louise Wilkinson slotting into third place in the same race. All competed over 5km.

This coming weekend Great Britain international Mitch Goose will don his England vest when he races as a senior in the McCain UK Cross Challenge being staged in Antrim, Northern Ireland. Fellow GB international Hollie Rowland was also selected to run for England in Antrim but sadly has had to withdraw due to a niggling knee injury.

CoNAC-ers enjoy the Edinburgh experience

9 January 2010

The world’s best cross country runners gathered at Edinburgh’s snow covered Holyrood Park on Saturday. The line up in the Bupa Great Edinburgh International Cross Country meeting included three of the club’s rising stars that had recently competed successfully for Great Britain in the European Cross-Country Championships.

Mitch Goose currently in the form of his life was invited to compete in the short course race. With two long course races scheduled in his future race programme a race over 4.2km would serve to sharpen his speed. With Mo Farah in the strong field the pace would never be pedestrian and so it proved to be. Racing over three laps Goose admitted that he was never totally comfortable in the snowy conditions but nevertheless was always in contention within the leading group. At the start of the third lap and final lap Steve Vernon and Ricky Stevenson with Goose trying to hang on in fourth place had clawed back Farah’s early lead. In an exciting climax it proved to be Stevenson’s day out gunning Vernon and Farah in the final 300m. Goose was hanging onto fourth spot but despite digging deep was out sprinted by Olympian Tom Lancashire just short of the line but had the consolation of another Olympian Andy Baddeley following him home.

For the diminutive Hollie Rowland it proved to be a long and arduous journey to the Scottish capital. Leaving her home base in Germany on Wednesday by overnight ferry followed by a prolonged 7½ hour train journey from Norwich proved not be the best preparation for a race against the Olympic 5000m and 10000m champion the incredible Tirunesh Debaba. Competing over the four-lap5.8km course in conditions not suited to Rowland she battled gamely throughout to finish in 14th place. There is no doubt that a fresher Rowland in different conditions would have been a comfortable top ten finisher.

When you come against Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele and associated Kenyans you know that life is going to be tough. For Ashley Harrell to be lining up with such world-class athletes was a wonderful experience that proved, as he expected, a daunting task. The African athletes dominated the race covering a snowy 9km with Kenyans filling the first three places and surprisingly Bekele was relegated to a disappointing fourth place finish. Harrell never looked out of place in this class field and he can be very pleased with his 17th finishing position.

Mitch Goose has come on in leaps and bounds over the past 12 months and for sure will continue to impress the Great Britain selectors in the year ahead when he will be looking to greatly improve his track performances. For Hollie Rowland and Ashley Harrell, the club’s most recent Great Britain representatives they are still making their mark at international level but will have greatly benefited from the opportunity of competing against the world’s best.

Norfolk County XC Championships cancelled

7 January 2010

Regrettably, the adverse weather conditions have forced the cancellation of the 2010 Norfolk County AAA Cross Country Championships, due to take place on Sunday 10 January at the UEA. There are several sections of the course that are currently frozen and badly rutted and have little prospect of thawing before race day.

Unfortunately, there is no room in the fixture list to reschedule another date for these Championships. All entry fee cheques will be shredded. Please contact Richard Polley at richardpolley@conac.org.uk if you paid by cash and require a refund.

Gold with a silver lining

13 December 2009

Dublin at the weekend proved to be a truly memorable occasion for three CoNAC-ers who were representing Great Britain in the European Cross-Country Championships being staged in a muddy Santry Park. Prior to the races rookies Hollie Rowland and Ashley Harrell were presented with mementoes of their first GB representation while “regular” Mitch Goose was delighted to be joined by his club colleagues for this prestigious international event.

Hollie Rowland competing as an Under 23 over a 6km 4-lap course produced the run of her life, once again proving what a wonderful competitor she is. As is always the case on these occasions the pace from the starting line was frenetic but it settled down after the first lap with Hollie always there or thereabouts. As the race progressed she moved steadily through the field and in the final lap had moved into fourth place, a situation that prompted TV pundit Steve Cram to say "Hollie Rowland is having a blinder". How right he was! In a nail biting finale it was only in the last few strides that Hollie's GB team mate Charlotte Browning caught her to snatch away a fourth place finish. With four GB finishers in the top ten and Hollie being the third to cross the line it meant that the team had pipped Russia to the gold medals by just three points. As a GB first timer Hollie's performance was remarkable and we can all now look forward to seeing her receiving many more international call-ups.

For Mitch Goose this was his third European Cross-Country Championship but the first time at Under 23 level. Racing over 8km it again proved to be a very swift start that was maintained well into the second lap of the five-lap race. Never in panic mode and looking supremely comfortable Mitch proceeded to make his mark on the race moving through field like a seasoned veteran. With one lap remaining he was the leading Brit, a position he had no intention of relinquishing, and was he was delighted to cross the finishing line in a confidence boosting fifth position. Still only 20 he has two more years as an under 23 competitor but if his progress continues at the current rate he will soon be challenging for a place in the senior team.

Ashley Harrell on his first GB appearance acquitted himself very well but the very fast early pace caught him a little off guard but he stuck to his guns throughout the race to finish in praiseworthy 39th position. Like Mitch, Ashley has two years remaining in the Under 23 age group so he will be looking to improve on his performance in next year’s championship that will be held in Portugal. On team front the French proved to be that little too strong for the GB squad who on this occasion had to content themselves with the silver medal position.

Monday’s edition of The Irish Times stated that the two Under 23 races at the championships were extraordinary for their high standard. So for Hollie, Mitch and Ashley to compete so well in such quality races is a testament to their ability and application to perform at the highest level.

CoNAC victories galore at third Ryston Cross Country Grand Prix

13 December 2009

While their club-mates were producing outstanding performances in the European Cross Country Championships in Dublin on Sunday, nearer to home many of the club’s athletes were making their mark at Shouldham Warren in the Ryston Cross Country Grand Prix Series.

The first of many victories on the day came in the Under 11 Girls 2km race when Catherine Longe came home in a comfortable first place with Sophie Wright not far behind in third place. Ashley Waterson repeated this position in the Under 13 Boys 3km race in which he was ably backed up by Bruce Beckett and Adam Davison who finished in second and third places respectively. Megan Soanes took the Under 13 Girls 3km race convincingly when producing a 30 second winning margin over fellow club athletes Alice Cheverton and Lorna Mcgrath who slotted into second and third places.

The club’s successes continued in the Under 15 Boys 3km race with Scott Greeves and Tom Hook battling it out for supremacy. On this occasion Scott just prevailed, crossing the line with a two second margin. It was a case of one, two, three in the Under 15 Girls 3km race with Natasha Potgieter, Mabel Beckett and Anna Hoogkamer laying claim to the podium places.

Racing over 6.5km Tom Francis produced a winning performance in the Under 17 Boys race with Jack Harrison crossing the line in third position. Iona Lake not wishing to be outdone by the boys also racing over 6.5km produced a winning performance in the Under 17 Girls race. Esme Salmon and Grace Bird finished third and fourth in the same race.

Ollie Maskell and Damien Rogers could not get the better of West Norfolk’s James Robinson and had to be content with second and third places in the Junior Men’s 6.5km race.

In the Senior and Veterans races over 6.5km Rachel Stringer home from Loughborough was a comfortable winner of the Senior Ladies race while super vet Jane Clarke created a new category record (23min 55sec) for the 6.5km course when winning the Ladies Over 45 division. Robert Cheverton was almost a minute ahead of his nearest competitor when wining the Men’s Over 50 category race.

Overall it was a super day for the club’s athletes, young and that little bit older with so many producing winning performances.

A memorable day in CoNAC's Cross Country history

28 November 2009

An extremely muddy Sefton Park, Liverpool proved to be a happy hunting ground for three of the club’s cross-country athletes earlier today. Hollie Rowland, Ashley Harrell and Mitch Goose all qualified to represent Great Britain in the forthcoming European Cross Country Championships that are being staged in Dublin a week on Saturday. There was also a very near miss for Dani Nimmock.

It was a nervous but inwardly confident Hollie Rowland who toed the line for the Under 23 Ladies 8.1km race, which was run simultaneously with the Senior Ladies. In hindsight perhaps her first of the three-lap race was a little too fast but she stuck her task only losing ground on the leading pack in the latter part of the race to finish an exhausted but delighted 7th place overall. Importantly she finished 2nd in the Under 23 race, a position that gained her automatic selection for Great Britain. Dublin will be Hollie’s first appearance for Great Britain.

Mitch Goose and Ashley Harrell were also looking to qualify for the Under 23 Great Britain team. Racing a three-lap 9.8km course they competed alongside the Senior Men. Mitch confidently settled into the pace of race with Ashleyl that little bit further back but always in contention. As the race progressed well into the third lap Ashley closed the gap on his club-mate with the end result that they battled it out for supremacy in the long home straight with Ashley just getting the verdict by a mere two seconds. It was a wonderful finale to a fantastic race and by finishing 3rd and 4th respectively they gained automatic selection for Great Britain While Mitch can lay claim to the fact that he is a seasoned international, Ashley still cannot believe what he has achieved. Like Hollie, Dublin will be his first appearance in the colours of Great Britain.

Dani Nimmock having represented England two weeks ago in the Home International at Gateshead was looking to up the stakes in the Under 20 Ladies 4.4km race. Sadly despite a fantastic run in which she gave of her all to finish 8th she just missed out on automatic selection for the Great Britain team. However, she does have the consolation of being named reserve. In the same race 800m athlete Rachel Stringer built up her stamina bank for the track season when finishing in 17th place while Claire Pring is displaying much better form crossing the line in a pleasing 24th position.

At the same meeting Alice Cheverton 25th, Katie Stratton 50th and Ashleigh Bunn 97th contested the Under 13 Girls 3km race while Under 13 Boys Jamie Finch 50th and Thomas Carr 83rd racing over the same distance also gained from the experience of running in top-flight races.

Tom Hook produced a fine run in the in the Under 15 Boys race over 3km to finish in a high 11th position and looks a good prospect for the future. Scott Greeves 28th finishing position in the same race was pleasing and like Hook should have promising future in the sport. Daryl Broughton completed in 93rd position.

Under 17 athletes Ben Stratton and Tom Francis sadly were not at their best when racing over 5.5km but still managed to finish in a reasonable 40th and 64th positions respectively. Iona Lake 18th, Juliet Broster 30th and Esme Salmon 44th found the going tough in the Under 17 Girls 4.4km race but gave of their all.

With three athletes gaining selection for Great Britain in was a memorable day in the club’s history and it is hoped that the younger members present will gain inspiration from what can achieved by dint of hard work, discipline and dedication.

Success continues at Ryston XC Grand Prix

16 November 2009

The second in the six race Ryston Cross Country Grand Prix Series took place over last weekend with many of the club’s younger athletes making an appearance at this very popular event.

Catherine Longe and Sophie Wright racing over 2km put in good performances to finish in second and third places respectively while in the boys race Zak Coleman worked hard to finish in sixth position. The Under 15 Girls competed over 3km with the club’s first scorer being Lorna McGrath who crossed the line in third place and it was Megan Bird who followed her home just one place adrift in fourth.

Scott Greeves battled his way round the Under 15 Boys 3km course but in the end had to settle for the runners spot. Mabel Beckett produced the club’s first win of the day in the Under 15 Girls 3km race and it was pleasing to note that club athletes filled six of the first eight finishing places in the race with Nastassja Potgieter 2nd, Emily Hoogkamer 4th, sister Anna Hoogkamer 5th, Maddy Frary 7th and Frances Mullaney 8th proving themselves to be a force to be reckoned with.

Sean Atterwell and Jack Harrison made it a one, two for the club in the Under 17 Boys 4.5km event finishing well ahead of the field, as did Juliet Broster in the Under 17 Girls 4.5km race. Esme Salmon and Grace Bird in the same race finished third and fourth respectively.

The senior and junior men and women competed over 9km and there was a club double with Andrew Hennessy winning the senior men’s race and the club’s newest international Dani Nimmock taking the ladies crown. Nicky Alford worked hard for her fourth place in the Ladies race. Damien Rogers is starting to display good form when finishing runner-up in the junior men’s race while in the veterans section Neil Davison can still display a good turn of speed when finishing second.

Golden touch for CoNAC ladies

16 November 2009

Two of the club’s ladies competing for England at different ends of the age scale helped their country to comfortable team victories in international cross-country events staged in Gateshead and Birmingham.

Dani Nimmock, representing England Juniors for the very first time produced a super run in the Home Countries International. Competing over a demanding and extremely muddy 5km course at Gateshead she was delighted to finish in a confidence boosting 7th place, a position that helped England easily secure team gold.

Having attended the medal ceremony and photo-shoot she headed back home in order to take in her Sunday morning run competing in the Ryston Cross Country Grand Prix Series staged at Shouldham Warren. Still very much on a high she scorched round the 9km course to victory in an impressive new course record of 30min 53secs.

At the weekend Dani will be travelling to Liverpool with club-mates Ashley Harrell, Mitch Goose, Hollie Rowland and Rachel Stringer where they will all compete in the European Cross Country Trials that will be held in Sefton Park.

At the other end of the age range, super veteran Jane Clarke competed in the British & Irish Masters’ International Cross Country event held in Perry Barr Park, Birmingham. Donning her England vest she was as pleased as punch to cross the line in 4th place in the Over 45 category, closing in the scoring three, which secured England a comfortable team victory over the Republic of Ireland.

Silver lining for our junior ladies at National XC Relays

31 October 2009

Once again the club’s endurance athletes displayed impressive form over the weekend when competing in the Saucony sponsored National Cross Country Relay Championship staged over the undulating Berry Hill Park, Mansfield.

There was an exciting silver medal winning performance from our Junior Ladies team. Racing over three 2.5km legs, lead off runner Dani Nimmock produced a solid performance to hand over to Claire Pring in a close order 7th position. Claire returning to competition after illness gave herself a confidence boost when moving the team up to 4th place. Final leg runner Rachel Stringer, never one to resist a challenge gradually reduced the deficit on 3rd placed Birmingham University to snatch the silver position in the final few metres of the race. It was a great performance from the ladies and for Dani and Rachel it doubled their winter’s championship medal tally having won team bronze two weeks earlier in the National Road Relay Championships.

There was drama for the club in the Junior Men’s Relay. Tommie Carroll, for reasons only known to himself missed the start! Playing catch-up over his 3km leg he handed over to James Jackson in a lowly 29th place. A gutsy run from James reeled in eight places for Sam Cheverton to take over for the final leg. Sam, as expected produced a battling performance to bring the club home in a creditable 11th place. The question that will remain unanswered! Would the team have medalled had Tommie made the start on time? We will never know!

Mitch Goose and Ashley Harrell both competing as senior athletes for the first time came of age when giving their team the best possible start. Competing over 4 x 5km legs Mitch tracked the leaders in the early stages then moved gracefully away over the final 1km to hand over to Ashley Harrell who increased the team’s lead to nearly 30 seconds after his stint. Despite their best efforts, elder brother Carl Goose and Stuart Huntington could not maintain the momentum and the team slipped back to finish in a creditable 13th place. A bonus for Mitch was that he recorded the third fastest leg of the day, quite an achievement for a first year senior athlete.

Another superb individual performance came from Hollie Rowland in the Senior Ladies 3 x 3km race. Taking the lead off leg she ran magnificently to hand over in third place in a time that proved to be the seventh fastest on the day. Super veteran Jane Clarke and Lynn Emmett stuck to the task in hand and managed to gain a 19th finishing place for the team. With Barbara Parker and Ruth Senior currently operating in the USA and Olivia Walwyn sidelined with “flu” the potential for future medal success at this event are there for the taking.

It is pleasing to note that many of the club’s endurance athletes now competing at senior level and just below have been training since their early teens. So it is a testament to their disciplined approach to their chosen sport over the years that they are now reaping the rewards for their efforts which in numerous cases international selection at cross country has been gained.

The club’s younger athletes are beginning to find their feet in national competition. The Under 13 Boys team of Adam Davison, Bruce Beckett and Ashley Waterson, each racing over 2km crossed the finishing line a respectable 25th position. The Under 13 Girls team of Alice Cheverton, Megan Bird and Katie Stratton also racing over 2km legs came home in 26th position in a race that 73 teams finished.

Mabel Beckett, Beth Stratton and Nastassja Potgeiter representing the club’s Under 15 Girls displayed good form over each of their 2km legs to finish in 18th position. 75 teams completed the race. The Under 15 Boys of Tom Hook, Ben Savage and Scott Greeves again competing over 2km legs managed to finish in a very respectable 14th place.

An excellent 10th finishing position was just reward for the Under 17 Boys team each racing over 2.5km. Ben Stratton, Frazer Heasman and Martyn Ramsey formed the squad that should prove to be a future force at the relays.

XC Season underway with first Ryston Runners GP fixture

12 October 2009

There was a modest attendance of the club’s athletes at the first of the Ryston Runners Grand Prix Series staged at Shouldham Warren on Sunday. However, it proved to be a case of quality not quantity with six individual wins being recorded.

Catherine Longe proved to be a comfortable victor in the Under 11 Girls race over 2km when recording 8min 48secs for her splendid effort. Under 13 Girl Lorna McGrath racing over 3km produced a battling performance to finish in 3rd place finishing just 5 seconds behind the winner when timed at 12min 06secs. New recruit to the club’s ranks, Jamie Finch competing in the Under 13 Boys race over 3km was also placed 3rd when recording a respectable 11min 42secs.

Under 15 Boys Scott Greeves and Tom Hook battled it out over the 3km course with Scott just prevailing to take the top honours in a time of 10min 12secs. Runner up Tom was just 3 seconds adrift. In the Under 15 Girls 3km race in was a one, two, three for the club with Nastassja Potgieter comfortably crossing the line in first place in 11min 02secs. She was followed home by Mabel Beckett who recorded 11min 12secs with Anna Hoogkamer slotting into third spot in 11min 27secs.

Damien Rogers made his mark in the Junior Men’s 5km race when recording an emphatic win in 16min 34secs, 1½ minutes ahead of the runner up. Dani Nimmock in the Senior Ladies 5km race stamped her authority over the rest of the competitors when cruising to victory in 17min 52secs. In the veterans section, all racing over 5km, Jane Clarke notched up the club’s sixth victory in the over 45 Ladies division when timed at 18min 26secs. Relatively new to the veterans ranks Andy Bunn’s time of 18min 04secs was good enough to place him second while Rini Hoogkamer in the Over 50 division managed a pleasing time of 18min 49secs that was good enough to place him third.

This Grand Prix Series of six races staged throughout the winter months is an ideal event for newcomers who want to sample the joys of cross-country running and also for those established endurance athletes who wish to test themselves over a measured distance. It is entry on the day and you can be home in time for a late Sunday lunch. Please visit www.rystonrunners.org.uk for all the dates and distances.

Annual XC Presentation Evening - Friday 22 May

19 May 2009

This coming Friday the annual CoNAC Cross Country Presentation Evening will take place at a new venue. We're booked in at Glen Lodge, the home of Bawburgh Golf Club, and the doors will open at 7pm with the presentation of awards getting underway at 7.30pm. Tickets are available from Harry Knowles on 01603 260254 or on the door - price £8 each (£21 for a family of three, £28 for a family of four etc) to include a top-notch buffet and disco afterwards. If you have any prizes for the raffle please bring them along on the night.

We've had another excellent season over the country so let's see lots of you at Glen Lodge on Friday evening to say "well done" to everyone concerned.

Hollie Rowland makes her international XC debut

28 March 2009

CoNAC athlete Hollie Rowland made her first international cross country appearance today. Following her excellent performances in the National and latterly in the Inter Counties championships she was deservedly awarded her England vest.

Competing in the junior race at the Home Countries International over an undulating 5k course at the Faenol Estate on Bangor, North Wales she finished in a praiseworthy 4th place just behind her teammate and Ipswich based Ellie Sparke. With European team gold medallist Emma Pallant taking the victor's laurels and the scoring quartet all finishing in the top six the team award came England’s way by a wide margin.

There was disappointment for Ashley Harrell who was selected for today's England Junior Men’s team but sadly had to withdraw due to a niggling calf strain.

International XC selection for club members

20 March 2009

Congratulations go to Hollie Rowland who has gained her first international selection. She will compete for England Juniors in the Home Countries Cross Country International that will take place in Bangor, North Wales on Saturday 28th March. Her selection follows her excellent performances in the National Cross-Country Championships and the Inter Counties Cross Country Championships.

Ashley Harrell, who is currently studying at St Mary’s University College, will join Hollie on the trip. For Ashley this will be his second appearance in the England colours.

Brave Goose leads Junior Men to National XC gold

21 February 2009

What a day it turned out to be at Parliament Hill for the club’s endurance athletes competing in the National Cross-Country Championships. It had everything, outstanding success coupled with acute disappointment, glutinous mud and a liberal dose of spring-like sunshine.

For GB International Mitch Goose it was his final chance to take the National Junior title. Racing over the two-lap 10km course Goose was cruising throughout the race before moving away from the field in the latter part of the race to set himself up for victory and fulfil his declared ambition. Sadly, fate then took a hand. A severe bout of lower leg cramp sidelined him. To his great credit and never to be labelled a quitter Goose got himself back into the fray, to battle his way back into the race to finish 6th. To say it was a bitter disappointment is an understatement but he had the consolation of leading his club to their first ever victory in the team event. Ashley Harrell had an outstanding run to finish in the 8th position while Luke Allen worked his socks off to cross the line in 22nd place. It was left to new recruit Tommy Carroll to close in the scoring four when finishing in 25th position. Next season all the team will have moved up to be seniors so it was a fairy tale way to finish their time in the junior ranks with a team victory at National level.

Olivia Walwyn continues to amaze. Now based in Cheshire but loyal to her Norfolk roots she produced a super performance in the Senior Ladies 8km race. Never far off the leaders she maintained her form throughout the race to finish in a 10th place, a position with which she was delighted. Loughborough based Ruth Senior produced a solid run to finish 27th and with Nicky Alford 110th and Lynn Emmett 214th the team finished in a creditable 8th place. The Junior Ladies were thin on the ground but Hollie Rowland was another to have a super run. Racing over 5km, a little short for Rowland, she finished in a pleasing 7th position. The club’s other representative in this race was Dani Nimmock who struggled with the onset of a cold to finish in 22nd place.

The Under 17 Boys team promised much this cross-country season but sadly the results have not gone their way. With Sam Cheverton a sidelined flu victim it was down to James Jackson to lead the team over the 6km race. We are yet to see the best of Jackson however, he put in a solid performance to finish 17th. James Senior came home in 46th place, Tom Crawshaw 57th and Ollie Maskell picked himself up after a tumble to finish in 76th position. Their overall points score placed them 5th in the team event, yet again just off a podium position.

The club’s youngsters gained valuable experience from racing at national level, which will carry them into future races with improved confidence. For the Under 13 Boys racing over 3km the underfoot conditions were arguably at there worst. Scott Greeves led them home in 39th place followed by Callum Russell in 93rd spot. Darryl Broughton on 146th and Adam King in 189th position made up the scoring four that placed the team in 15th position overall.

The Under 15 Girls team raced over a muddy 4km course to also finish in 15th place overall. Juliet Broster 65th, Esme Salmon 93rd, Anna Hoogkamer 122nd and Hazel Wilson 207th made up the scoring four. 398 completed the Under 15 Boys race over 4.5km in which Martainn Ramsey placed a very creditable 58th and Tom Hook finished in 104th position while for the Under Girls 13 Alice Cheverton put her best foot forward to cross the line in 140th a third of the way up the field.

Ryston romp for the Under 15 Girls cross-country squad

15 February 2009

The club’s Under 15 Girls caused a stir at the 5th of the Ryston Cross-Country Grand Prix Series when filling the first five places in their 3km race. Mabel Beckett crossed the line first and was quickly followed home by Esme Salmon, Anna Hoogkamer, Nastassja Potgeiter and Grace Bird. Martainn Ramsey, not to be outdone took the honours in the Under 15 Boys 3km race.

For the Under 13 Boys also racing over 3km Scott Greeves took the honours with Darryl Broughton coming home in 3rd place. Oliver Maskell led the way home in the Under 17 Boys 4.5km contest with club mate Sean Atterwell running well to finish in the runners up position. Racing over 9km Nicky Alford added to the City club’s list of winners when taking the plaudits in the Senior Ladies race. And V45 Guy Amos created a new meeting record when scorching round the 9km course in a winning 28min 33secs.

Rowland and Walwyn are CoNAC's top performers at South of England Championships

24 January 2009

As the song goes it was a case of mud, mud, glorious mud! For the City of Norwich endurance athletes competing in the South of England Cross-Country Championships these were the underfoot conditions that greeted them on their arrival at the course in Uxbridge.

Previous years have seen the club pick up a clutch of medals, at this, the first of the cross-country season's major championships so on this occasion it was disappointing to collect only one individual silver medal.

Competing over 6km the Under 17 Boys team had realistic hopes of coming home with team medals, sadly this did not materialise, as at the end of a gruelling race they found themselves relegated to fourth place in the team rankings. For the scoring quartet, Sam Cheverton (17th), James Jackson (21st), Ben Stratton (24th) and Tom Crawshaw (29th) this was a result was well below expectations. Their declared aim is to put things right in February when they will be competing in the National Cross Country Championships being staged in North London.

Hollie Rowland lifted the gloom with a tremendous run in the Junior Ladies 5km race. Always with the leaders she gained strength as the race progressed but in the final stages could just not match the pace of European Junior Champion Stephanie Twell and had to be satisfied with a well-earned individual silver medal. Dani Nimmock also produced a much-improved performance when coming home in a pleasing 5th place.

Olivia Walwyn travelled down from her base in Cheshire to compete in the Senior Ladies 8km "slog" to very good effect. Undaunted by the opposition she maintained contact with the leaders until the latter stages of the race and was delighted to finish in a super 4th place. This was arguably Olivia's best performance over the country and it was great to see her producing the goods at senior level. Junior track international Ruth Senior now elevated to the senior ranks found the mud not to her advantage but still produced a pleasing run to finish in 13th position.

For the Junior Men racing over 8km Luke Allen and Ashley Harrell produced solid performances when finishing in 12th and 14th positions respectively. For many of the City club's younger competitors it was possibly the most testing conditions any of them had encountered to date. Most notable performance came from Alice Cheverton competing in the Under 13 Girls 3km race in which she finished a praiseworthy 17th position. Juliet Broster's 37th finishing position in the Under 15 Girls 4km event was hard earned while in the Under 15 Boys 4½ km race Martain Ramsey (22nd) and Tom Hook (49th) were the club's top scorers. Scott Greeves competing in the Under 13 Boys 3km race managed a creditable 27th finishing position.

While his club-mates were ploughing through the mud in Uxbridge, junior track international Rick Ward was competing in the warmth at the Lee Valley Indoor Athletic Arena. Competing in the Inter City Challenge 800m, he put behind him two recent indifferent performances to finish runner up in a new personal best indoor time of 1min 50.54sec. With the national championships to come a sub 1.50 must be on the cards for Ward.

CoNAC dominates County Cross Country Championships

11 January 2009

As we have come to expect the club was a dominant force at the Norfolk County AAA Cross Country Championships staged, for the first time for many years, over the UEA campus.

Ideal racing conditions greeted the athletes as a thaw had set in following the recent freezing conditions. On the spectator friendly course supporters were treated to some excellent racing with Toby Price setting the ball rolling for the club with a fine win in the Under 11 Boys race. In the Under 11 Girls race Megan Bird gave a good account of herself when crossing the line in 4th position.

Scott Greeves and Magnus Chapman notched up a one-two in the Under 13 Boys race over 3.5km while Bradley Stansbury came home in a comfortable 4th place. For the Under 13 Girls racing over the same distance Natalie Flintham was the club’s top finisher when completing in 4th position.

The Under 15 Boys racing over 4km proved to be a clean sweep with the club’s athletes filling the top five positions. First across the line was Martainn Ramsey followed in quick succession by Callum McLaren, Tom Hook, Jack Harrison and Sean Watson. It was pretty much the same picture in the Under 15 Girls 4km race with Esme Salmon taking gold, Mabel Beckett silver and Juliet Broster bronze.

The Under 17’s Girls and Boys competed over 6km and it was Claire Pring who took the honours in the Girls race. For the Boys it was another clean swept for the club with our athletes slotting into the first six places. Top spot went to James Jackson with Tom Crawshaw, Ben Stratton, James Senior, Tom Francis and Ollie Maskell following him home.

The Under 20 Ladies, Senior Ladies and Veteran Ladies all raced over the 6km course. The Under 20 Ladies title went to Hollie Rowland with Rachel Stringer coming home in the runners up position. For the Senior Ladies the title was secured by Ruth Senior with Kelly Rushton working hard to finish in third place while Nicky Alford came home in a comfortable 4th position. Jane Clarke continued in her winning ways when taking the Lady Veteran title with Lynn Emmett coming home in the bronze medal position.

Rounding off the day the Under 20 Men competing over 8km tagged along with the Senior and Veteran Men for four their five-lap 10km race. Ashley Harrell proved to be a confident winner of the Under 20 Men’s race, as did Guy Amos when winning the Veteran’s category and finishing second overall. For the Senior Men Adam Lewis once again displayed improving form when closing in as the silver medal winner.

Please visit Norfolk County AAA for the full results listings.

Elsewhere "up north" Olivia Walwyn took the Cheshire Senior Ladies title for the first time and in deepest Suffolk Abbie Beales finished third in the Under 17 Girls championship. Sam Cheverton went one better in the Under 17 Boys event when filling the silver medal position.

Mitch Goose, a boy amongst men, with a point to prove

10 January 2009

"As seen on TV" City of Norwich AC athlete Mitch Goose travelled up to Scotland to compete in the televised Great Edinburgh Cross Country International meeting staged in Holyrood Park over the weekend.

Goose was delighted to be invited to compete in the "short course" 4km race. This was a race in which he came up against a number of seasoned Internationals that included Olympians Andy Baddeley and Tom Lancashire. Pre-race talk was that he was out to prove a point! In the extremely windy conditions he was never overawed; always maintaining contact with the leading group and it was only over the final 800metres that the senior athletes were able to break away. Undaunted, Goose maintained his form when battling all the way to the line to finish in a fine 8th place.

At 19 and still in the junior ranks, for Goose arguably this was one of his toughest tests and best ever performances over the country proving that he has all the credentials to make it right to the top when he moves up to senior status.

Mitch Goose picks up team bronze at European Championships

14 December 2008

The Parc de Laeken in Brussels proved to be a wonderful venue for the European Cross Country Championships in which CoNAC's Mitch Goose represented Great Britain in the U20 team. In Spain last year, the team that included Mitch took silver so they were hoping to go one better on this occasion.

Racing over 4 laps of 1,500m on a crisp clear day the early pace was modest but mid-race things began to hot up which left David Forrester just off the leading pack. During the third critical lap Mitch looked strong and was running relaxed. Expectations over the final 1500m lap were that he would move through the field into a top ten position but sadly this did not materialise and Mitch crossed the line in a very creditable 15th position. Post race analysis was that while somewhat disappointed with his race position he had run a solid race and is confident in the knowledge that he can and will do better in the future. Additionally, the onset of a cold just pre-race cannot have helped his performance.

The spread of the team medals could not have been closer with France taking gold with 50pts, Norway were runners up with 51pts leaving Great Britain to pick up the bronze medals with 52pts.

Mitch is already looking forward to his next important race when he has been invited to compete in BUPA Great Edinburgh International Cross Country event early in the New Year.

Ryston proves to be a happy hunting ground for the Club’s cross-country athletes

14 December 2008

While Mitch Goose was in Brussels successfully competing for Great Britain in the European Cross Country Championships, nearer to home fellow club members were making their mark in the third round of the Ryston Runners Grand Prix Series staged at Shouldham Warren on Sunday.

The club's first winner came in the Under 11 Boys 2km race with Adam Davies crossing the line comfortably ahead of the opposition. Racing over the same distance the Under 11 Girls race was a closely contested when Megan Bird was just pipped for the victors spoils when finishing second. Ashleigh Bunn came home in a pleasing third place.

In the Under 13 Boys event, racing over 3km, Scott Greeves added to the club’s list of winners when proving to be the best on the day ahead of club mate Bradley Stansbury. Callum Russell just missed out on the medals when finishing in fourth place. Martin Ramsey and Tom Hook made it another "one two" for the club in the Under 15 Boys 3km race when finishing well ahead of the opposition. Mabel Beckett racing in the Under 15 Girls race, again over 3km, continued the club's winning ways when taking the honours just ahead of club mate Esme Salmon. New recruit Nastasja Potgieter came home in a creditable third place.

Moving up the age groups Under 17 Boy Oliver Maskell competing over 6.5km completed a comfortable win while Iona Lake returning to the cross-country scene after illness had to settle for second place in the Under 17 Girls race again over 6.5km.

With the Junior, Senior and Veteran Men all competing over 6.5km it was the prominent colours of the club that led the way. Ashley Harrell back home for the weekend from St Mary's University College created a new junior record for the 6.5km course when recording a winning 20min 29secs. Not to be outdone Veteran Over 45 Guy Amos did likewise in recording 20min 32secs, almost three minutes ahead of the nearest opposition. The senior race went to James O'Neill while in the Veteran Over 40 Men's race Andy Bunn was a delighted winner.

Jane Clarke is proving to be in top form when adding to her list of recent cross-country victories when convincingly winning the Veteran Ladies Over 45 6.5km race. Tanya Harrison made a welcome return to competition in the Senior Ladies 6.5km race and can feel very satisfied when finishing in the runners up position.

Goose Once More Gains International Recognition

29 November 2008

Mitch Goose continues to enhance his reputation when comfortably qualifying to compete for Great Britain Juniors in the forthcoming European Cross-Country Championships that will be staged in Brussels in two weeks time.

Racing in a fog shrouded Sefton Park, Liverpool on Saturday he and fellow athletes David Forrester (Sutton St Helens AC) and Nick Goolab (Belgrave Harriers) set down a marker for the rest of the field when breaking away early on in the 6.7km race. The muddy underfoot conditions made the going tough but the trio stuck to their task and it was only in the latter stages of the race that Forrester made a break for home, a gap he maintained to the finish. Goolab and Goose continued their battle with Goolab just gaining the advantage over the final 50 metres to take the runners up position.

Goose, a team silver medallist in the 2007 championships was content with his run and is now looking forward to Brussels where he hopes he and the team can improve better their performance of last year.

The hard luck story of the race was that of Ashley Harrell a possible challenger for a place in the team was running extremely well and in contention when a pulled Achilles tendon brought him to an abrupt halt forcing him to call it a day.

A small contingent of the club’s athletes also made the trip to compete in the Liverpool staged McCain UK Cross Challenge that incorporated the European Trials. Ruth Senior and Hollie Rowland had their eyes set on a place in the Great Britain Under 23 team and despite running well but not yet hitting their best form finished in 9th and 11th places in their 8.1km race. With the top six gaining selection, understandably they were very disappointed not to have made the cut.

Racing over 5.5km the Under 17 Boys from the club are looking to follow in the footsteps of Mitch Goose and if they continue to display the same enthusiasm and discipline and willingness to train who is to say what might happen. Sam Cheverton is proving to be a revelation this cross-country season when finishing in 7th place in a highly competitive race. James Jackson paid the penalty of a too fast an early pace when finishing in 17th position, Tom Crawshaw came home in 25th spot, while newcomer Ben Stratton can be pleased with his finishing position of 36th.

Juliet Broster competing in the Under 15 Girls 3km race can be pleased with finishing position 15th and as the season progresses she will surely improve and produce some excellent results. Esme Salmon 32nd finishing position also indicates that there is a lot more to come for this young lady. Tom Hook who is a first year Under 15 battled all the way in the Under 15 Boys 3km race finishing in 40th position in a race that 120 young athletes completed.

Scott Greeves 12th finishing position in the Under 13 Boys 3km race was a great effort as was that of Daryl Broughton who displayed a gritty determination to cross the line in 23rd position.

Jane Clarke’s International Cross Country Victory

15 November 2008

Jane Clarke is currently into a rich vein of form. She made the long train journey down to Swansea on Friday to compete for England in the British Masters’ International over the weekend. Competing in the Over 45 division she anticipated a very tough battle for the major honours and so it proved to be. Competition results of late proved that she was in excellent form and her self-confidence was justified when she battled her way to a notable victory. Well-done Jane, a super performance!

Jane Clarke Displays Supreme Form

9 November 2008

City of Norwich AC youngster Scott Greeves made a last minute dash from a cancelled football match to compete in the Ryston Runners Cross Country Grand Prix held at Shouldham Warren on Sunday. For Scott the effort proved to be well worthwhile as he stormed to a comfortable victory in the Under 13 Boys 3km race. Daryl Broughton, in the same race, dug in to take a close order third place.

However, the star of the meeting was veteran Jane Clarke. Competing over 9km she displayed supreme form to break the long-standing course record when recording 31min 55secs, a time bettered by only two male athletes on the day. Jane’s fine form will put her in confident mood for Saturday’s British and Irish Masters Cross Country International being staged in Swansea.

Mabel Beckett was another convincing victor for the club when producing a 40 second winning margin in the Under 15 Girls 3km race. Not to be outdone Martin Ramsey also racing over 3km led the Under 15 Boys race from start to finish while Tom Hook battled all the way for his third place finish.

Claire Pring, back racing after recovering from a troublesome injury, kept the club’s winning sequence rolling when cruising to a comfortable win in the Under 17 Girls 4.5km race. Begona Julian making a return visit to Norfolk won the Senior Ladies 9km race in fine style.

Veteran athletes Andy Bunn (Over 40) and Rimi Hoogkamer (Over 45) racing over 9km made their mark in their respective categories when both finished in bronze position.

For Ashley Harrell now based at St Mary’s University College, Twickenham there was international duty to fulfil. Competing in England colours for the second time he travelled to Mol, Belgium to compete in the Lotto Cross Cup. In a tough race in very tough conditions he finished in a pleasing 7th place, a position that should be a confidence booster for the forthcoming European Cross-Country trials being staged in Liverpool later in the month.

Fellow St Mary’s student Mitch Goose, who also has his mind set on making the Great Britain team for the European Cross-Country Championships, competed for his second claim club Aldershot Farnham & District in the Hampshire Cross Country League on Saturday. Although feeling a trifle uneasy at not wearing the CoNAC “stripes” he produced a super run to finish in 3rd place. Luke Allen in the same race displayed improving form to finish in 13th position. Carley Rose now studying at university in Bournemouth came home in 25th position in the ladies race.

Golden Opportunity Missed!

1 November 2008

The expectations were gold; the reality was silver and bronze! Disappointment is all part of athletics and the Club’s Under 20 Men’s and Under 17 Boys teams competing in the National Cross-Country Relay Championships staged in Berry Hill Park, Mansfield on Saturday had to take it on the chin.

The Club’s international squad of Ashley Harrell, Rick Ward and Mitch Goose were confident in their ability to retain their crown won last year. Sadly it was not to be despite their best efforts on the day over the 3km course they had to settle for silver medals behind victors New Marske Harriers. First leg runner Harrell handed over in a close order fourth to Rick Ward who confidently moved into the lead. However, in the mid-stage of his leg the fast moving Ricky Stevenson representing New Marske overhauled him. Setting off in second place for the final leg Mitch Goose gave of his all but sadly was not able to close the deficit on the lead runner to claim the expected gold. There was a small consolation for Goose when recording a time of 8min 57.60secs, the third fastest individual lap of the day.

A lost shoe was perhaps the cause of the Under 17 Boys team not being able to claim a higher reward than third place. Also racing over a 3km lap the trio led off by, find of the season, Sam Cheverton who took the team into a comfortable lead that was extended by Tom Crawshaw on the second leg. Final leg athlete James Jackson was aware that he had a battle on to maintain the team’s position. His situation was not helped when “shedding” a running shoe part way round his lap, a mishap that relegated him and the team to bronze position over the final 400m. Sam Cheverton was rewarded with the sixth fastest individual time of the day, 9min 23.70secs

Loughborough based Ruth Senior together with Olivia Walywn and veteran Jane Clarke made up the Senior Ladies team who acquitted themselves extremely well over the 3km course and can be justifiably pleased with their finishing position of eighth in a race in which nearly eighty teams completed.

With ninety teams starting the Under 15 Boys race over three 2km laps it was a tough call for the boys. Martin Ramsey ran solidly to hand over to Tom Hook in 34th position. Hook proceed to move the team up the field to 26th spot for Callum McLaren to put his best foot forward to bring the team through to a pleasing 17th position. There was a mid-table finish for the Under 13 Boys three man squad when crossing the in 37th place. Scott Greeves, last minute replacement Adam King and Bradley Stansbury all produced solid performances.

The Senior Men found the going tough when completing in 80th place, a position that put then halfway down the field. Jon Quint, Daniel Mann, Any Walpole and Andy Bunn made up the squad.

New XC season kicks off in autumn sunshine

14 October 2008

Staged at Shouldham Warren on Sunday the Ryston Cross Country Grand Prix Series kicked started the winter season for City of Norwich AC’s endurance athletes. This popular series now entering it’s twenty-third year attracted competitors in numbers on what proved to be a super autumnal day for cross-country racing.

Megan Bird competing in the Under 11 Girls 2km race produced a good run to finish in an impressive third place while not far behind Ashleigh Bunn was pleased to cross the line in fourth position. Further down the field Anna Harrison worked hard for her 21st finishing position.

Darryl Broughton made his mark in the Under 13 Boys 3km race when filling the silver medal position after a tough battle with Diss Athletic Club’s Cameron McKie. The City club’s first win of the day came with a flourish in the Under 15 Boys 3km race with Jack Harrison outgunning his team-mate Tom Hook in the home straight for a narrow victory. The Under 15 Girls duo of Juliette Broster and Esme Salmon, also racing over 3km, mirrored the Boys performances when in a close order finish Juliette took the honours by the small margin of two seconds.

However, James Jackson’s margin of victory was emphatic in the Under 17 Boys 5km race when crossing the line almost a minute and half ahead of his nearest rival. Maintaining the City club’s winning streak Juliette Knights when producing a positive run was delighted to take the honours in the Under 17 Girls 5km race.

Looking at the senior ranks Guy Amos used the race as a final warm-up for his trip to Amsterdam at weekend where he will compete in a half-marathon. Amos produced the fastest time of the day over the 5km course. His speedy time of 15min 18secs secured him an easy victory in the Veterans Over 45 category. James O’Neill and Iain Robertson filled the top two places in the Senior Men’s race again over 5km while in the Veterans Over 50 5km race Harry Knowles produced a solid performance to finish runner up.

For the ladies Claire Forbes sparkled when winning the Veterans Over 35 race with consummate ease and at the same time producing the fastest overall time recorded by a lady on the day when covering the 5km course in 17min 38secs. Nicky Alford after a hard fought race, on this occasion had to settle for the runners-up position in the Senior Ladies race.

While Guy Amos is in Amsterdam at the weekend fellow club members will be contesting the National 6 and 4 Stage and National Young Athletes Road Relays being staged at Sutton Park, Sutton Coldfield. It will be a tough call for the City club’s teams as they will be up against the best squads in the UK.

Goose acquits himself well on World stage

30 March 2008

CoNAC’s Mitch Goose made his debut on the World stage at the weekend. Despite flying out from the troubled new Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport, Goose made it on time to compete in the 36th IAAF World Cross Country Championships staged in Edinburgh.

Holyrood Park with its landmark backdrop of Arthur’s Seat provided the athletes with a superb and demanding course, true to the traditions of British cross-country running. However, this did not deter the athletes from the African nations displaying their outstanding talents when filling the first nineteen places in the Junior Men’s 8km race.

First Brit home was David Forrester in very respectable 24th place. Goose, despite taking a tumble at the frenetic start, didn’t panic and picked himself up to work his way back up the field. In the last of the four-lap race he displayed great determination to cross the line in a pleasing 55th position just ahead of team-mate Ross Murray.

It was only two weeks ago in Nottingham that Goose gave family and coaches a few jitters when only qualifying for the Worlds in the last of the six available places for selection to the GB team. So, to close in as second Brit and sixth European athlete to finish the race it was a very happy Mitch Goose who attended Sunday’s post race banquet.

The Kenyans, Ethiopians and Ugandans dominated the team race but the GB team can draw solace from the fact that there were the first European team to close in when finishing 9th overall.

Over the past winter Goose has picked up a team silver in the European Cross Country Championships, represented Great Britain on three occasions and also helped his club to take team gold in the National Cross Country Relay Championships. Not a bad record for the youngster who is confident that there is more in the tank for the future.

After a short rest to recharge the batteries, Goose will concentrate on the summer track season where he will look to greatly improve his 1,500m and 5,000m times.

CoNAC retains the Ryston Runners Cross Country Grand Prix Visitors Cup yet again!

17 March 2008

The curtain came down on the 2007-08 Ryston Cross Country Grand Prix Series at the weekend and as is now the norm the club came away with the Visitors Trophy for the best overall performance over the six race series.

It was one of those rare occasions at Shouldham Warren when the weather was unkind to the organisers and athletes as a strong wind and more than a spot of rain prevailed throughout the morning. However, this did not deter those club’s athletes in attendance who - as expected - produced some good performances. Megan Bird competing in the Under 11 Girls race came home in an admirable 4th place while in the Under 13 Girls race Emily Hoogkamer, after competing in the Inter Counties Cross Country Championships held in Nottingham the previous day, finished on top of the podium following an impressive run.

Ollie Maskell - also stretching his legs after competing in the Inter Counties Cross Country Championships - finished runner up in the Under 17 Boys event. In the Senior Men’s race Mark Collinson, Andrew Bunn and Mark Gotts came home in crocodile style when finishing in 6th, 7th and 8th places respectively. For the Veteran Men Peter Tuttle grabbed third place in the Over 40 division while Emily’s father Rini Hoogkamer finished ahead of the rest in the Over 45 category.

The club’s trio of ladies had a good day. Dani Nimmock, yet another taking the opportunity to ease away the stresses and strains of competing in the Inter Counties, scored a comfortable win in the Senior Ladies race. Rachel Stringer - building on her stamina base for the summer track season - came home in second place. And Claire Forbes, competing in the Over 35 Veteran Ladies division, left the competition trailing when winning with over four minutes to spare over her nearest rival.

The Ryston Runners Grand Prix Series has been on the cross-country calendar for twenty-two years now and provides the club’s athletes of all ages with the opportunity to benefit and compete at various cross-country distances on a regular basis throughout the winter months.

Mitch Goose to take on the world

16 March 2008

The club’s endurance athletes were out in numbers on Saturday when representing Norfolk in the UK Inter Counties Cross Country Championships & World Trials staged in Woolaton Park, Nottingham.

Plaudits on the day must go to Mitch Goose who has gained selection to run for Great Britain Juniors in the forthcoming World Championships that are being held in Edinburgh on Sunday 30th March. TV pundits were confident that Mitch would qualify with ease and expectations were high. At the end of a tense and demanding 8km race Mitch held onto his sixth position, the final qualifying place but at the same time giving his parents some very anxious moments. In the same race Rick Ward came home on 36th place with Luke Allen crossing the line in 46th position. Ashley Harrell started the race with high hopes but due to a chest infection failed to stay the course and had to drop out.

Young Tom Hook over the winter season has improved in leaps and bounds. Competing in the Under 13 Boys 3km race he finished in a very creditable 32nd position. Scott Greeves homed in at 97th while Sean Watson crossed the line in 131st position. Another name for the future is young Mimi Barr. Her 33rd finishing position in the Under 13 Girls 3km was a pleasing performance. Teammates Emily Hoogkamer and Kiera Mooney finished in 103rd and 124th respectively. For the under 15 Boys racing over 4.5km Callum McLaren was best placed at 87th. Esme Salmon (90th) Juliet Broster (118th) and Hazel Wilson helped make up the Under 15 Girls team that raced over 4km.

What can be said about James Senior?! Competing in the Under 17 Boys 6km championships race Sky Sports viewers were treated to the spectacle of seeing him open up a 30m gap over the field in the first 300m. However, he did finish the race albeit well down the field. It was good to see Ollie Maskell running into better form when finishing in 74th position. Joel Taylor (114th) and Tom Crawshaw (134th) made up the County’s scoring four. Sam Cheverton competing for Suffolk crossed the line in 68th place.

In the Junior Ladies 6km race Dani Nimmock arguably ran the hardest race of her short career to finish in a pleasing 16th position. Hollie Rowland, racing under IAAF rules as a senior athlete gave a very good account of herself in the 8km race. She completed in a high 27th position. Olivia Walwyn now competing in the black and gold of Cheshire finished not far adrift of Hollie in 30th place. Exile Ruth Proctor, who now resides in Sheffield, as always worked hard to finish in 74th position while Claire Forbes, new to the club’s ranks, just missed out on making the top 100 when placed 102nd. Stuart Huntington was not enamoured with racing over 10km in the Senior Men’s race but can be reasonably satisfied with his finishing spot of 117th.

An added bonus for Dani Nimmock and Mitch Goose is that they both finished as runners-up in their category of the UK Cross Challenge to pick up monetary awards to help offset their training expenses.

Team silver for Junior Men in National Cross Country Championships

24 February 2008

Alton Towers took on as new persona on Saturday when the famous theme park hosted the Saucony sponsored English National Cross Country Championships, the UK’s biggest event of its type with a cast of many thousands.

We were well represented at the event in which all the best teams in the country were competing for honours. Our best chance of success was with the Junior Men’s team headed by international Mitch Goose. Racing over a 9.6km three-lap course, with each lap including a very steep 150m hill made it a very tough call. With four to score Goose, despite going down with a chesty cold on the day of the race, gamely stuck to his task to finish in a high 6th position. City club’s newest international Ashley Harrell produced a super run to finish in 13th place. Third scorer Stuart Huntington came home in 38th position, for him a disappointing run and with Steve Cannell just returning to some degree of fitness closing in the scoring four in 82nd place the chance of gold was lost. Rivals Aldershot Farnham & District AC proved too strong on the day but such is the spirit with the junior squad they will be looking to wrench the trophy away from them next time around.

The Under 13 Boys team competing over 3.2km will surely benefit from the experience of competing in the National and can be pleased with their team placing of 10th. Tom Hook (41st), Scott Greeves (71st), Sean Watson (73rd) and Darryl Broughton (143rd) made up the scoring four. For the Under 15 Boys Callum Mclaren and Jack Harrison were the club’s only representatives. Sticking to their guns they finished in 128th and 300th positions respectively. Competing over 4km the Under 15 Girls team finished in 13th place overall the scorers being Juliette Brewster (85th), Esme Salmon (114th), Iona Lake (148th) and Hazel Wilson (161st) while in the Under17 Girls race Claire Pring ploughed a lonely furrow for her club when finishing very highly placed in 16th.

The Under 17 Boys squad competing over 5.8km produced a sound team result when finishing in 11th overall. James Jackson produced a very capable performance when placed 35th. Tom Crawshaw displayed fine fighting spirit to finish 86th with James Senior hot on his tail in 88th place while Ollie Maskell, on the comeback trail from injury finished 136th. It is pleasing to note that all four boys will compete in the same age group next year and will for sure produce a much-improved result.

Two of the best individual performances on the day came in the Junior Ladies race over 5km in which Hollie Rowland finished in 11th place closely followed by Dani Nimmock in 16th position. Both young ladies had higher expectations of themselves but can draw some satisfaction from their efforts on the day. Satisfaction can also be drawn from the performance of the Senior Ladies team that finished 9th overall in their race over 8km. Fell racing international Olivia Walwyn although not overly pleased with her 33rd finishing position led the team home. Ruth Proctor crossed the line in 58th place and was followed home by Claire Forbes in 73rd spot. Nicky Alford made up the scoring four with a finishing position of 110th. Racing over 12km 800metre specialist Carl Goose proved that his stamina base is in place when finishing in 160th in the Senior Men’s race. 1244 competitors completed the race.

Ashley Harrell makes successful international debut in Belgium

10 February 2008

Ashley Harrell has had a hectic time of late. Consecutive weekends have seen Harrell travel to Dusseldorf to represent the South of England while on Sunday he found himself in Dour in Belgium. On this occasion he was representing England for the first time in a junior international cross country fixture and was delighted to finish in a creditable 8th place, a position that helped England to a comfortable team victory.

Club’s continuing success at Ryston Runners Grand Prix

10 February 2008

There was a springtime feel in the air for Sunday’s Ryston Runners Grand Prix that made ideal racing conditions for the competitors. The club’s athletes were out in numbers and as expected produced some excellent performances with Emily Hoogkamer setting the standard with a fine win in the Under 13 Girls 3km race. Keira Mooney worked hard for her third position while Anna Hoogkamer crossed the in fifth position. In the Under 13 Boys 3km race Tom Hook after a stirring battle had to settle for the runners up position by the small margin of two seconds. Juliet Broster was pleased to pick up the bronze award in the Under 15 Girls 3km race.

Claire Pring proved to be an emphatic winner of the Under 17 Ladies 4.5km while in the Under 17 Men’s 4.5km race the club’s trio of James Jackson, Damien Rogers and Micah Rogers had to give way to West Norfolk’s James Robinson. Jackson finished runner up with Damien and Micah finishing in 3rd and 4th respectively.

At senior level and racing over 9km, Dani Nimmock - despite a heavy cold - still managed to claim victory over club mate Nicky Alford while Louise Wilkinson competing in the Over 45 Division proved that age is not a barrier to success when securing a very comfortable victory. Rini Hoogkamer finished a pleasing second in the Over 45 Men’s division and is proving to be a very able training partner for daughters Emily and Anna.

CoNAC-ers in cross country battles home & away

3 February 2008

Swansea staged the British Universities Cross Country Championships in which CoNAC athlete Mitch Goose represented St. Mary’s University College. In his first year at St Mary’s, Goose has developed a habit of winning medals at cross-country. Already he has won a team silver at the European championships and individual silver & team gold representing Great Britain in Portugal. At the weekend he added to his impressive collection when finishing in a high 15th position. He was the first Under 20 athlete to finish and his impressive effort helped St Mary’s to their first ever team gold ahead of the mighty Loughborough and Birmingham University teams. Club newcomer Hollie Rowland was representing the UEA and expressed her disappointed at her finishing position of 18th, feeling she was capable of securing a place in the top ten. With two more years at the UEA she will have the opportunity to make amends.

CoNAC athletes Dani Nimmock, Ashley Harrell and Stuart Huntington travelled to Dusseldorf to represent the South of England in an international Under 23 cross-country race. 17- year-old Nimmock can be very pleased with her performance when finishing in 7th place against older opposition and putting to rest her perceived disappointing run in the Southern championships the previous weekend. Ashley Harrell followed up his 5th place in the Southern championships with a solid run when placed 14th, a position he was not entirely happy with. However, on his return home he was delighted to learn that he has been selected to compete for England Juniors in Belgium this coming weekend. Harrell has worked very hard in training and has earned his selection, his first international vest. Sadly for Stuart Huntington he had to drop out in the latter part of the race with severe stomach cramp.

In the Norfolk County senior cross-country championships held at Houghton Hall on Sunday, Ruth Proctor returned to the winners rostrum when taking the ladies title while Mickey Beamish was a surprised a delighted winner of the men’s title. Neil Davison took the honours in the veteran men’s category.

Excellent CoNAC showing at Southern XC Champs

26 January 2008

Nearly 50 athletes from City of Norwich AC travelled to the infamous Parliament Hills course in London to compete in the Southern Cross Country Championships on Saturday. It was particularly pleasing to see so many younger athletes running and enjoying the experience, especially in the under 13 boys and under 15 girls age categories.

The under 13 boys team were lead from the front by Tom Hook who finished in a high 22nd place, followed by Scott Greeves (40th), Sean Watson (49th) and completing the team Darryl Broughton (83rd), helping the team to a very creditable 5th place overall. Other finishing positions: Alex Lubbock (108th), Arthur Chapman (109th), Charlie Clarke (129th) and Magnus Chapman (159th) bringing the B team home in 22nd place.

The under 15 girls team consisting of Iona Lake (32nd), Esme Salmon (77th), Juliet Broster (78th) and Hazel Wilson (95th) performed very well to finish in 9th position.

There were a number of exceptionally good individual performances, notably James Jackson in the under 17 men’s race who ran strongly to finish 12th, supported by James Senior (22nd), Sam Cheverton (28th) and Connor Darby (56th) - however, disappointingly, the team missed winning bronze medals by just 18 points.

Hollie Rowland, a new recruit to the City of Norwich ranks late last year, continues to be in great form by winning a bronze individual medal in the junior ladies race.

This race was swiftly followed by the junior men (pictured right) who were hoping to emulate their team win from last year and retain the trophy that they had just returned on the day, but this time they were without the help of Mitch Goose who was on international duty in Portugal. Ashley Harrell had a storming run to place a high 5th followed closely by Stuart Huntington in 7th, splitting a pair of Aldershot and Farnham District AC athletes. Indoor and outdoor track specialist Rick Ward ran to his best ability in 20th place with Luke Allen closing the team in 38th, earning the team silver medals.

The picture looks very rosy for the forthcoming National Championships next month when Mitch Goose will be with the team seeking to add gold medals to their already formidable collection from past seasons as a squad.

Six senior ladies competed over the 8km course. Olivia Walwyn, GB international fell runner, ran very strongly to place 11th, with Emma Coombs (30th), Ruth Proctor (37th), Nicola Alford (60th) closing the team to finish in a very high 4th position.

The senior men eventually finished in 30th place with individual positions as follows: Wayne Lincoln (123rd), Jon Quint (144th), Mikey Beamish (180th), Andy Walpole (240th), Stu Roger (317th), Mark Gotts (584th) and veteran athlete Paul Woodyatt (721st).

Meanwhile, Mitch Goose - representing GB for the second time this season - had an exceptional run in Lisbon in the tripartite match between GB, Spain and Portugal. Mitch eventually finished second, just five seconds behind David Forrester, fellow GB athlete and the highest placed finisher in the European Championships in Toro, Spain, last December. Mitch now aims to add another GB vest to his growing collection at the World Trials race at Nottingham in mid March, hoping to become a member of the junior men’s squad at the World Championships in Edinburgh on 30 March.

Gold medals galore at Norfolk County AAA Cross Country Championships

13 January 2008

The club’s junior athletes had a field day at the Norfolk County Cross Country Championships staged in conjunction with the Ryston Runners Grand Prix Series at Shouldham Warren.

In the Under 11 Girls race Megan Bird found herself in a tough battle with Norwich Road Runners Sophie Alden who on the day prevailed. Megan on this occasion had to be content with silver. The diminutive Ashleigh Bunn took individual bronze and with Megan Wilson crossing the line in fourth place the team gold award came the way of the girls. In the Under 11 Boys race Toby Price was a convincing gold medal winner by almost a minute but as none of the clubs could fulfil the criteria of three competing athletes team medals were not awarded.

It was a different story in the Under 13 Girls race in which the club’s athletes filled the first three places. Mimi Barr took gold and proved to be a comfortable victor while Keira Mooney and Emily Hoogkamer battled for silver and bronze. Keira just got to the line ahead of Emily to take the silver, however both were credited with the same finishing time. With the minimum score of just 6 points the team gold award was clear-cut in favour of the club’s girls.

Whatever the girls can do the boys can match! Scott Greeves, Tom Hook and Sean Watson, in that order, filled the first three medal places in the Under 13 Boys race to ensure that the club secured another team victory with a minimum points score.

West Norfolk’s Rebecca Daines continued in her winning ways when taking the Under 15 Girls title but she could not prevent the club from securing another team title. Juliette Knights displayed better form to take silver and was backed up by Iona Lake in bronze position with Esme Salmon coming home in 5th position. For the Under 15 Boys Callum McLaren took silver and with Martin Ramsey and Jack Harrison finishing in 4th and 5th places respectively yet another team gold was secured for the club.

It was disappointing that not one County club were able to field a full team in the Under 17 Girls race in which Claire Pring proved to be a convincing winner. It was a different story in the Under 17 Boys race in which the club filled the first five places adding to the tally of team victories. James Jackson, displaying improving form took gold with Tom Crawshaw and Joel Taylor taking silver and bronze awards. For good measure twins Damian and Micah Rogers crossed the line in 4th and 5th places.

Dani Nimmock, Hollie Rowland and 800m specialist Rachel Stringer combined well in the Under 20 Ladies race to fill the first three places that ensured team gold for the trio. Rick Ward, Ashley Harrell and Luke Allen mirrored the ladies finishing positions in the Under 20 Men’s race taking the total of team gold medals to a superb eight. This added to the seven individual gold medal won made the day a particularly pleasing one for the club’s young athletes.

Belfast International

7 January 2008

Club’s cross country runners make their mark in Belfast International

It required an early morning flight on Saturday for the small party of City of Norwich AC athletes to get themselves across to Northern Ireland in time to compete in the Belfast International Cross Country fixture that incorporated the UK Cross Challenge.

Competing in the wonderful grounds of the Stormont Estate from the outset the athletes had to contend with a six inch covering of snow which as the twelve race programme rolled-out became a quagmire and a genuine test of cross country running.

Dani Nimmock (below, left) competing over 3600m in the Junior Ladies race, felt that despite finishing a praiseworthy second, she had sold herself short. Finishing only five seconds behind winner Heather Timmins representing the North of England, Nimmock’s post race comment was to say she had too much left in her legs at the end of the race and should have challenged for the victors laurels. An opportunity missed but nevertheless all part of the learning curve!

The City club’s latest international Mitch Goose (above, right) was in the leading breakaway trio in a classy Junior Men’s 5600m race but mid-race failed to cover a move by fellow international David Forrester and James Wilkinson and sadly dropped off the pace. Despite his best efforts he was not able to regain contact and on this occasion had to settle for a third placed finishing, a position below his own expectations.

In the Under 17 Boys 5600m race James Jackson displayed improving form. A fast early pace saw Jackson up with the leading pack, a position he valiantly maintained throughout the race so it was pleasing for him that his sterling efforts were rewarded with a pleasing eighth place finish. Tom Crawshaw, currently struggling to find his best form found the underfoot conditions not to his liking and has to settle for twenty-eighth position.

At the younger end of the age scale Tom Hook (see photo, left panel) is thoroughly enjoying this winter’s cross-country experiences. Competing in the Under 13 Boys race over 1800m he proved what a very capable athlete he is when crossing the line in a creditable tenth place. Kiera Mooney again racing over 1800m also made her mark in the Under 13 Girls competition when mirroring Hook’s position of tenth. It was a long round trip for the youngsters but both benefited from competing in top-flight cross-country races.

Sunday will see the City club’s junior athletes taking part in the Norfolk County Country Cross Country Championships that will be held in conjunction with the Ryston Grand Prix Series and will be staged at Shouldham Warren, Downham Market.

UK Cross Challenge

10 November 2007

Newcomer to the CoNAC ranks, Hollie Rowland, who finished an impressive fourth in the Junior Ladies race in the UK Cross Challenge staged in Gateshead on the 10 November. See photo, left

National Cross-Country Relays

3 November 2007

CoNAC Under 20 team L - R Rick Ward, Mitch Goose, Ashley Harrell

Winners at the National Cross-Country Relays, Mansfield, 3 November 2007