Charles Hicks, Scott Beattie and Jamie Dee all have big cross-country wins in America, while British masters are in action at Long Eaton

Three British student runners gained success in recent days in the Conference Cross-Country Championships in the USA.

PAC 12 Cross-Country Championships, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, October 29
Charles Hicks, the US-based Shaftesbury Harrier, who in the summer ran a UK teenage 10,000m record of 27:47.63 in the NCAA final, won the 8km race in a fast 23:35.

His strong last 500 metres saw him pull off a surprise 10-second win over NCAA 5000m champion Cooper Teare, who is a 3:50 indoor miler, and Eduardo Herrera, with the latter leading Colorado to victory over Hicks’ Stanford.

Pac-12 champion Charles Hicks! #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/V6Z5xiDwOn

— StanfordXCTF (@StanfordXCTF) October 29, 2021

American Athletic Conference Championships, Lakeland, Florida, USA, October 29
The 2017 English National under-17 runner-up Scott Beattie, who improved his 10,000m PB to 28:41.38 this summer, had his best ever senior win. His 23:50 8km defeated his Irish team-mate Peter Lynch’s 23:54 as they led Tulsa to a clear win.

Joe Arthur was sixth in 24:10 while Ellie Leather was 10th in the women’s 6km in 22:03, the same time as fellow Briton Alice Newcombe back in 15th.

With a COURSE RECORD time of 23:49.2, Scott Beattie is the individual @AmericanXCTrack champion! ?? pic.twitter.com/SxZUozSgvG

— Tulsa Track (@TulsaTrack) October 29, 2021

MAAC Championships, Orlando Florida, USA, October 30
Jamie Dee, who set a 13:46.78 5000m PB this year, just defeated team-mates Joshua de Souza and Ehab El-Sandali with all three timed at 24:37 in the 8km as his Iona team took nine of the top 10 places.

Holly Smith was ninth in the women’s race in 21:42.

Sophie Murphy and Jamie Dee both take home the Individual MAAC Cross Country titles!!

#GaelNation | #MAACXC pic.twitter.com/AXFfLyP5Ie

— Iona Athletics (@ICGaels) October 30, 2021

MVC Championships, Normal Illinois, USA, October 29
Briton Adam Fogg, who improved his 1500m PB to 3:38.89 this summer, just lost out to his Drake team-mate as his 24:14 put him close behind Isaac Basten’s 24:13.

Ivy League Cross-Country Championships, Princeton, New Jersey, USA, October 30
Britain’s European junior 5000m seventh-placer Phoebe Anderson finished fourth in the 6km in 20:39 in a race won by Kayley DeLay’s 20:09.

Hoka NAZ Elite One Hour Run, Phoenix, USA, October 30
Alice Wright set a British record for one hour on the track of 17,044m to add just over 500 metres to Michaela McCallum’s rarely challenged 21-year-old mark of 16,495m. The US-based Brit passed 10,000m in 35:10.59.

ICYMI, Alice Wright has set a UK one-hour track record in Phoenix, Arizona.

She covered 17,044m to beat Michaela McCallum's 21-year-old mark of 16,495m. ? @NAZ_Elite pic.twitter.com/x1Ofn5MLdk

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) October 31, 2021

British Masters Cross Country Relay Championships, Long Eaton, October 30
In a keenly contested and well-attended event on a flat course, Tipton comfortably took the M35 four-leg event in 50:07 though it was Notts’ Alastair Watson who was clearly fastest with a 9:30 anchor leg.

Leeds dominated the M45 category to win by over two minutes in 53:44 with their opening leg runner Mick Hill quickest with a 10:04.

Leicester won a more keenly contested M55 section in 55:37 by just eight seconds from Guildford whose Terry Booth and Mark Tennyson shared the fastest leg of 10:49 after closing over the second half of the race.

Westbury edged a competitive M65 event in 39:24 as masters legend Nigel Gates moved them from third to first on the last leg though Salford’s Stan Owen was quickest with a 12:20 clocking.

New outfit Cheshire Dragons won the women’s W35 three leg event in 35:07 though third-placed team Charnwood had the quickest leg with Juliet Potter anchoring with a 10:55.

Bristol and West came through strongly on the last leg for W45 victory in 36:24 as they overhauled Telford for whom multi international winner Claire Martin was easily quickest with a 11:36.

Holme Pierrepont left the opposition behind in the W55 event in 43:16 though it was Steel City’s Kate Morris who was a minute quicker than anyone else.

Steel City led home the W65’s in 50:21 with their Dot Kesterton fastest with a 15:05 though W70 legend Angela Copson running for Rugby’s medal-winning W55 team was faster with a 14:43.

Martin Duff’s report and detailed results are in our member-only AW Clubhouse – click here

Manchester University Cross-Country Relays, Fallowfield, October 30
Birmingham University dominated the 55th running of this University event with eight of the top ten women’s teams and six of the men’s and four of the mixed.

Individually, though, the most impressive individual performance came from Lauren Hayes who ran legs two, four and six for the mixed Hallamshire Harriers team and ran two identical fastest laps of 10:21 before also adding the fifth best time at 10:30.

Heyes ran alternate legs with her husband Andrew Heyes and their time was the fifth quickest team time overall.

Nottingham University’s Sam Stevens was fastest man with 8:54 just up on Will Barnicoat and Tom Keen’s 8:55.

Start Fitness North East Harrier League, Lambton Castle, October 30
Michael Wilson, from the slow pack, led home 535 men with a 37:47 timing ensuring he will in future be going off from the fast pack as he was equal third fastest overall.

Second in was David Green from the medium pack with a 37:24 clocking which made him second fastest overall and his time was beaten by fourth across the line Adrian Bailes, who ran 36:55 from the fast pack.

Annette Quaid, from the slow pack, came in first from a 438 strong women’s field with a 29:46 net time with Danielle Hodgkinson from the medium pack finishing 20 seconds later but with a net 27:39.

Even faster, but only marginally, was Catriona MacDonald from the fast pack who ran 27:29.

Cambridge University Hare & Hounds MegaCross Inter-club Invitational, Coldhams Common, October 30
British Championships 1500m finalist Niamh Bridson Hubbard led home the women in 18:53 ahead of Nancy Scott’s 18:59.

Inter-Varsity steeplechase winner James Edgerton and 28:22.33 10,000m performer Matt Leach shared the winning men’s time of 29:21 though Edgerton got the verdict.

Scottish District League, Hawick, October 30
Alex Cheplin won the men’s race in 27:29 while Beth Ansell was first woman in 26:11.

West Yorkshire Cross-Country League, Leeds, October 30
Sam Dickinson took the men’s event in 31:32 from Joe Sagar’s 31:46.

Jemima Elgood was first woman in 19:39 from Almi Nerurkar’s 19:56.

Cambridge Harriers 5, Bexley, October 30
Former Kent cross-country and South of England track champions Dean Lacy (31:34) and Clare Elms (37:30) had clear wins on a new tough four-lap route.

Lacy won his eighth title since 2007 while W55 world record-breaker Elms beat another multiple Kent champion and also a former UK 10,000m winner Louise Knight (formerly Watson) into third.

Soria, Spain, October 31
Uganda’s Rodrigue Kwizera, who was 11th in the 2019 World Cross Country Championships, won the men’s 10km in 28:54 to defeat Ugandans Thomas Ayeko (29:00) and Joel Ayeko (29:09).

Kenya’s Lucy Muli crossed the line first in the women’s 8km race in 27:22.

Ethiopia’s Likina Amebaw (27:29) was second and Burundi’s Francine Niyomukunzi (28:11), the winner in Amorebieta, was third.

Mariana Machado from Portugal was top European in fourth (28:30).

Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon, Nairobi, Kenya, October 31
Elisha Kiprop (2:11:07) and Valentine Kipketer (2:30:01) were winners. Kiprop was just seven seconds ahead of Joshua Kogo.

Vincent Ngetich’s 60:44 gave him the accompanying half-marathon while Geoffrey Kipchumba 28:28 gave him a 10km victory.

Serpentine Last Friday of the Month 5km, London Hyde Park, October 29
Sue McDonald ran an identical time to the October running of the event, the week before she set a British W50 record in the London Marathon. Her 18:28 gave her a minute women’s victory here.

The other UK marathon age group record-holder from London, Yuko Gordon, was first W70 in an UK age-group lead of 22:25.

Maxwell Dumbrell was a clear men’s winner with his 15:26 falling a frustrating one second short of his official PB though he had run a 15:08 parkrun the week before.

Kenley Terror 10km, Surrey, October 31
UK age-group marathon record-setter Sue McDonald ran her third race within 48 hours as she easily won the 10km around Kenley Airport in 41:26.

Llanelli Half-Marathon, October 31
Dewi Griffiths was a clear winner in a slow 69:14.

Uelzenm Germany, October 31
Hanna Klein’s 31:40 PB surprisingly defeated Alina Reh (31:43) to take the German title while Nils Voigt won the men’s race in 28:46.

Marseille-Cassis 20km, France, October 31
In this famous point to point race, Felix Bour won in 60:55 to defeat European 10,000m champion Morhad Amdouni’s 62:03. Mekdes Woldu easily led home the women’s race in 73:24 with Liv Westphal second in 74:56.

Kapsowar, Kenya, October 30
Nicholas Kimeli was a runaway victor in 28:04 to easily defeat Jacob Krop’s 28:42.

Feliciana Jepkosgei led home the women sharing the winning time of 32:43 with Jesca Chelangat.

Durban City, South Africa, October 31
Precious Mashele defeated a quality field in 28:11 to head Stephen Mokoka’s 28:15. Tayla Kavanagh clocked 32:10 to lead home Lesotho´s Khatala Neheng’s 32:18 in the women’s race.

Buenos Aires, Argentina, October 30
South American Championships medalist Joaquin Gomez won the hammer in a PB 76.36m.