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PSUK Cross Country Championships

 

Pontypool Park, Pontypool, Gwent - Wednesday 6 February 2008

 

The 2008 PSUK Cross Country Championships were staged by Gwent Police at Pontypool Park where the organisers were blessed with a sunny dry late winter/ early spring day, some 400 athletes competed over a hilly picturesque parkland venue.  The Championships incorporated the selection races for the teams to represent PSUK at the USPE Cross- Country Championships being hosted by France in Vichey in March 2008.  The first four athletes in each race would gain automatic selection with two discretionary places to be decided later in the day. 

 

The course for both men and women could be described as hilly and challenging!

 

The women ran two complete laps, covering a distance of approximately 6km and the men ran three complete laps, approximately 10km in distance.

 

The venue itself was within Pontypool Park, both races starting and finishing on the famous Pontypool Rugby Pitch.  From the pitch the athletes ran down to the Afon Llwyd River and along its river bank before turning and heading back towards the first of their hill climbs.  The course then climbed a total of 800m through a wooded area onto pasture land before reaching the peak of the climb at the Shell Grotto and then turning to descend the hill towards the top of the ski slope, before turning into a wooded area, culminating in the crossing of a stream before negotiating a short sharp climb to the ‘Stones’.  The athletes then descended the hill running on the diagonal to the rugby pitch completing their lap.

The women went off first, by the time they had reached the start of the first climb up to the Grotto, a break-away group being led by Kate Swanson, (City of London), last years champion, had formed. This group included Katherine Reeves (Metropolitan), Sarah Simmonds (West Midlands), Janine Brown (British Transport Police), Jessica Turnbull (Gloucestershire) Natalie Farrow (Humberside) and Diane Lauder (Lothian & Borders).  By the end of the first lap Turnbull had taken control of the race and led the women into their second lap by some 20- 30 metres.  Simmonds was giving chase in second place with Brown in third.  These positions remained unchanged to the finish, Turnbull taking the Championships in a time of 33mins 55secs, for the first time in eight years.  With places up for grabs to represent PSUK in the USPE Cross-Country Championships in Vichey, Reeves ran strongly to finish fourth, Lauder  finishing fifth and Amanda Purser (Hampshire) finishing sixth overall and taking the leading Vets Championship.  All first six finishers were later selected to represent PSUK in the European Championships.

 

Other top performances came from Kate Armstrong (Cambridgeshire), Kendra White (Cleveland) and Gaby Waring (North Wales) who won their respective age categories. 

 

The Metropolitan ladies retained the overall Championship team title, with Gloucestershire taking the Minor Forces team title and the Metropolitan taking the Veterans team title. 

 

In the men’s race, David Mitchinson (Hertfordshire), making his first championship appearance as a police officer, was in control of the race by the time the men had reached the start of the first climb up to the Grotto.  Mitchinson was followed by Steve Rhys-Jones (Hampshire) and Ben Whitby (City of London) who in turn were being chased by a group which included Steve Cairns (Lothian & Borders), Darrel May ( Hampshire), Peter Tucker (Metropolitan), Richard Gardner (South Wales), Ian Wetherall ( V40 – Cheshire), Malcolm Fowler ( V45 - Cheshire), Ben Gamble (Staffordshire) and Darren Riley ( V40 - West Midlands).  By the end of the first lap Mitchinson had established a good lead over Rhys- Jones in Second and Whitby in third.  May was chasing in fourth, with Gardner in fifth and Tucker in sixth.  Over the final two laps Mitchinson extended his lead over Rhys-Jones who in turn extended his lead over Whitby. Mitchinson took the title in 38mins 31secs.  May ran strongly to finish fourth, with Tucker taking Gardner on the final lap to finish fifth and Gardner finished sixth.  Of the first six finishers, Mitchinson, Rhys-Jones, Whitby and Tucker gained automatic selection for the European Championships.  May who is a Police Community Support Officer was not eligible for selection and Gardner did not wish to be considered.  The final two discretionary places for the Europeans were awarded to Martin Williams (West Midlands) and Steve Cairns. 

 

Not too far behind the first six, Fowler finished eighth overall, first Vets 45, with Wetherall finishing two places behind to take the Vets 40 category and Riley taking second. Des Michael (Hertfordshire) had a very good run finishing just in front of Mick Bond (Essex) both winning their respective age categories. With Eddie Murfin (Lincolnshire) winning the Vets 60 prize. 

 

Just like their female colleagues, the Metropolitan retained the overall Championship team title, with Cheshire taking the Veterans team title and Northamptonshire taking the Minor Forces team title.

 

Results

 

Men's Race

 

Men's Open 

 

1st

David Mitchinson

38:31

Hertfordshire

2nd

Steve Rhys-Jones

39:28

Hampshire

3rd

Benedict Whitby

40:13

City of London

 

Men's Veteran 40+ 

 

1st

Ian Wetherall

44:04

Cheshire

2nd

Darren Riley

44:19

West Midlands

3rd

Steve Cairns

45:28

Lothian & Borders

 

Men's Veteran 45+

 

1st

Malcolm Fowler

43:39

Cheshire

2nd

Tony Caulton

47:02

Derbyshire

3rd

Mark Evans

49:09

GMP

 

Men's Veteran 50+

 

1st

Mick Bond

48:45

Essex

2nd

Dave McMillan

49:13

Derbyshire

3rd

Pete Gray

50:52

Northamptonshire

 

Men's Veteran's 55+

 

1st

Des Michael

48:41

Hertfordshire

2nd

Mathew Hand

56:37

Dyfed Powys

3rd

Ian Cooper

58:46

West Mercia

 

Teams - Men

 

Men's Team Open

 

1st

Metropolitan

 

2nd

Hampshire

 

3rd

Cheshire

 

 

Men's Teams - Veteran

 

1st

Cheshire

 

2nd

Lothian & Borders

 

3rd

Metropolitan

 

 

 

Men's Minor Forces Teams

 

1st

Northamptonshire

 

2nd

Norfolk

 

3rd

Central Scotland

 

 

 

Women's Race

 

Women's Open

 

1st

Jessica Turnbull

33:55

Gloucestershire

2nd

Sarah Simmons

34:10

West Midlands

3rd

Janine Brown

34:28

BTP

 

 

Women's Veteran 35+

 

1st

Amanda Purser

35:18

Hampshire

2nd

Andrea Pickup

36.21

Metropolitan

3rd

Kate Swanson

36:26

City of London

 

 

 

Women's Veteran 40+

 

1st

Kendra White

36:58

Cleveland

2nd

Tracey Marshall

40:49

West Yorkshire

3rd

Diane Hamilton

41:13

Derbyshire

 

 

Women's Veteran 45+

 

1st

Kate Armstrong

35:54

Cambridgeshire

2nd

Grace Palmer

39:09

Staffordshire

3rd

Katrina Kemp

39:15

Leicestershire

 

 

Women's Veteran 50+

 

1st

Gaby Waring

41:55

North Wales

2nd

Judy Mills

42:20

Avon & Somerset

3rd

Heather Mitchell

43:34

West Yorkshire

 

 

Teams - Women

 

Women's Open Teams

 

1st

Metropolitan

 

2nd

Lothian & Borders

 

3rd

Hampshire

 

 

 

Women's Veteran Teams

 

1st

Metropolitan

 

 

2nd

Devon & Cornwall

 

 

3rd

Lancashire

 

 

 

 

Women's Minor Forces

 

1st

Gloucestershire

 

2nd

Fife

 

3rd

Cambridgeshire

 

 

 

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