Richard Goodman, 24, and Hannah Viner, 21, beat huge fields
to win the men's and women's races in the Metropolitan Cross Country
League at Wormwood Scrubs. It was Viner's first ever win in a league whose
every race attracts hundreds of competitors from London and the Home Counties.
By contrast, Goodman’s Metropolitan outing simply maintained a long winning
streak.
"Wormwood Scrubs is a flat course and the ground was
not too muddy, so I realised it would be a fast start", Viner reported.
"I kept to my plan of sitting in the lead group for the first third of the
6 km race and then taking the lead. With 2 km to go I stretched out further,
and had the speed and strength to reach the line first. It's a nice confidence
booster for the British Universities Championships next month".
A niggling injury had meant that Goodman was unsure about entering
the 8 km race. "I picked up a hamstring strain a few weeks ago and lost
training and fitness", he said. "I only decided to run five minutes before
the start, and wanted to run conservatively. So I sat in with the lead group
and only pushed the pace over the final kilometre. I was challenged in a sprint
finish over the last hundred metres, for my closest ever win".
Eden Davis, 18, placed fourth in the South of England indoor
U20 60m championship at Lee Valley. His time of 6.86 was his third personal
best of the day, having improved through the heats and semi-final. "It
couldn't have been a better start to the year", Eden commented. "I
feel strong and ready for the season ahead".
Idan Gal-Shohet, 17, took fourth place in the long jump in
the South of England U20 Championships, setting an indoor personal best of 6.57m.
"I didn't have enough speed on the runway", he commented, "and
the performance didn't really reflect my current form in training. I do believe
everything will come together soon".
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