Noticeboard: Road Relays; Meggan; XC; Masters; RaceRunning

Tuesday 15th March 2016

Action from the 2015 Road Relays at Livingston (photo by Bobby Gavin)

Livingston stages the Scottish National Road Relays once again this year – with the event to take place on Sunday 3 April – and clubs are reminded the closing date is this weekend.

The Men’s Six-Stage and Women’s Four-Stage races are always popular and it would be great to see the Road Relays being really well-supported in 2016.

The race at Almondvale starts at 12 noon that day with changing and declarations at St Margaret’s Academy, Almondvale, Livingston.

Entry forms and all the key information is online now on the Events section and we are taking these by post to Alex Jackson, 26 Mortonhall Park Crescent, Edinburgh, EH17 8SY.

Teams can be entered featuring Senior and Junior Men and Women born before 1 September 1998 (ie no U17 athletes). There are Masters gold, silver and bronze medals for both Men’s and Women’s Teams with ages starting at 40 on the competition day for both Men and Women.

ENTRIES CLOSE first post on SATURDAY 19 MARCH 2016.

*Marshal help on the day is required to add to the support of volunteers from Edinburgh AC and Lothian Running Club. Please email offers of help to Alex Jackson ajackson@staffmail.ed.ac.uk by March 25. Thanks.

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Meggan at Hampden in 2014 (photo by Mark Shearman)

Wheelchair racer Meggan Dawson-Farrell set two T54 Scottish records in Dubai this week.

The 2014 Commonwealth Games athlete was racing over 1500m and clocked a new best of 3.34.54 to place sixth in a bunched finish in an international race in Sharjah.

This was a big improvement on Dawson-Farrell’s previous best time of 3.42.47 which was set back in 2013. Meggan duly competed for Scotland at Hampden in the T54-T57 1500m final, where she finished seventh.

Meggan then followed that up with 1.56.99 over 800m for her first time under two minutes and another Scottish T54 best.

The Commonwealth Games Federation earlier this week announced the list of Para events included in the integrated athletics programme for Gold Coast 2018. There was good news for the likes of Meggan and Sammi Kinghorn, with the T54-T57 1500m included, and young sprinter Maria Lyle.

But, unfortunately, events currently applicable to Libby Clegg, Jo Butterfield and Stef Reid are not in the programme for Australia.

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Sol Sweeney – overall U17 Cross Challenge win

Perth Strathtay athlete Sol Sweeney and Giffnock North AAC’s Kate Richardson gave Scotland two winners in the overall British Cross Challenge Series.

The points are added up following various events at Milton Keynes, Liverpool, Antrim, Cardiff and Birmingham with prize-money awarded.

Sweeney took the U17 Men’s crown after a third place run in the Inter-Counties while there was a Scottish 1-2 at U13 Girls with Richardson edging out VP-Glasgow’s Lily-Jane Evans-Haggerty.

Other Scots with top 12 placings were as follows:

Senior Women: 7^th Rachael Dunn (Edinburgh AC); 11^th Louise Mercer (Edinburgh Uni Hare and Hounds); 12^th Steph Lawrie (VP-Glasgow); U17 Women: 5^th Laura Stark (Kilbarchan AAC); 12^th Danielle Kelly (Giffnock North AAC); U15 Girls: 5^th Jessica MacLeod.

U20 Men: 5^th Euan Gillham (Kilbarchan AAC), 10^th Gavin Bryson (Edinburgh AC); U15 Boys: 7^th Hamish Armitt (Giffnock North AAC); U13 Boys: 6^th Ben Cameron (Forres Harriers).

Tables on British Athletics website

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Results from the British Masters Track and Field Champs in London are available on the link here. There were a few Scottish medals, including M65 new Scottish record in 8.54 for Brendan Lynch.

Results online

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There is a Disability Coaching workshop coming up in May in RaceRunning – with the session at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow on Saturday 7 May.

This workshop is designed to give participants knowledge of RaceRunning, athlete training and running bikes.

It will help you to identify potential athletes, how to deliver athlete training and understand how to adjust bikes.

The workshop is delivered in a classroom in a practical manner with participants having the chance to see and speak with athletes. It is geared for coaches and volunteers who are interested in/already working with RaceRunning athletes, and no prior qualification or experience needed.

Tthe cost of the four-hour course (which is for those aged 16 +) is £50. It is from 10am to 3pm with an hour’s lunchbreak.

For more information and to register your place please contact: Margaret Drysdale, A.C.E. RaceRunning Club, info@acerr.org, tel: 07531 061 307

Tags: British Cross Challenge, Livingston, Masters, Meggan Dawson-Farrell, RaceRunning, Rachael Dunn, Road Relays, Sol Sweeney