The Lindsays Cross country season kicked off in Cumbernauld on Saturday (22 October 2016) with the Scottish National XC Relays. The scottishathletics-run event drew its biggest entry in 24 years of joint championships for men and women.
Olympians Andy Butchart and Callum Hawkins swapped the track and roads of Brazil for the mud and hills of Cumbernauld. Butchart led defending champions Central AC to victory in the Men’s Senior race and Hawkins ran the fastest 4k of the day in 11.01 on the third leg for Kilbarchan AAC.
Full coverage and links to the results are available here.
Fellow Olympian and cross country enthusiast, Eilish McColgan offered her six tips on taking on the challenge of competing in XC races. Eilish believes that this discipline is ‘a fundamental part of athletics.’ She goes on to say that: “Regardless of age or ability, the gruelling combination of mud, hills and freezing temperatures produces strong athletes, not just physically but mentally.”
Highlights of the competitions at Cumbernauld (courtesy of Vimcosport.com) can also be seen here and include our COO, Ian Beattie, who is also Chairman of scottishathletics, talking about how positive the increased profile and popularity of the event is for the sport. He believes that the improved level of performance that the XC season is encouraging is raising the standards of Scottish athletes across the board. The next event is on Saturday 5 November where the Short Course Championships will take place at King George V Playing Fields in Renfrew.
