Gala Meets the World
March 31st, 2008On a long weekend packed with athletic action, Gala Harriers of all ages were mixing with some of the biggest names in world athletics in Edinburgh and impressing coaches elsewhere in Scotland. The return of the World Cross Country Championships to Scotland after an absence of over 30 years, when it was last hosted at Bellahouston Park in Glasgow, saw a feast of athletic events stretching over 4 days.
Last Thursday saw 5 young Harriers – Laura Anderson, Charlotte Brown, Hannah and Emily Jones and Martha Douglas being put through their paces at a UK Athletics Coaching Day at Pitreavie, Dunfermline by Bob Ashwood, UK Athletics Endurance Coach and Tom Hanlon, Scotland’s steeplechase record holder and Olympic finalist.
That evening, 2 more young Harriers met with the USA cross country team at Meadowbank as part of the ‘Scotland Welcomes the World’ events prior to the XC championships. Gala Harriers had been selected to support the American team as part of a Scottish Athletics initiative and in an informal meeting organised by the American Consulate, Gala’s Kerri Sandilands and Gillian Sandie met with all the team who presented them with mementos and participated in a question and answer session with the girls.
On Friday, in Strathallan School in Perthshire, young Alice Haining was running in the Scottish Schools International Cross Country event and came an impressive 7th place overall in the girls’ under 15 s, well chuffed to be the first Scot home in the event.
Saturday morning saw Charlotte Brown, selected by Gala Harriers officially to meet the USA team come away with souvenir hats, T shirts and autographs and she also met representatives from team GB, China and Japan, before having breakfast with some other international competitors in advance of the day’s action.
The weather on Sunday couldn’t have been worse in the early part of the day when a cold and wet 5K Fun Run was the curtain raiser for the World XC races, enticing Harriers Derek Fraser and Anne Purves to brave the elements before the African nations began their domination of the afternoon’s events. The rain was still falling as young Harrier Lucy Morris, chosen as the USA team’s flag bearer, proudly carried the stars and stripes in to the arena before the main races began – and the sun came out!!
Essential movers and shakers from the Harriers who were hard at work behind the scenes over the four days were coach and co-ordinator Neil Renton, who became men’s 6 times World Cross Country Champion Kenenisa Bekele’s body guard following the Ethiopian’s emphatic win; Moroccan team escort and French interpreter Caroline McDermott; David Hunter, Ruth McCann and of course Gala Harriers’ own Gabby Logan, Katy Anderson who co-ordinated the PR, media and communications for Scottish Athletics. Thanks are also due to Neil and Lynsey Renton who co-ordinated the ‘Support a Team’ events.
ALSO: The wind and rain which have dogged this year’s winter cross country season, were also the prevailing conditions in France where Gala Harrier and local policewoman Dianne Lauder took on the worlds’ police, representing the UK Police in Vichy, in the International Police Cross Country Championships two weeks ago. In the womens’ event in which some of the athletes are professionals and are given time off work to prepare, the winner was a Romanian Olympic runner, with Dianne (who had just worked a night shift) coming an excellent 26th from 70, ensuring that the UK team came in an impressive 4th place~ well done Dianne.
