CROSS COUNTRY NOVEMBER 28
The Fraternity Cup race was first awarded by the Hampstead Harriers in 1933 and, under their new banner Barnet & District
AC, won the team event in 1934 and recently in 2015!
It was originally thought that a race for the ’Fraternity of men’ who came back from the First World War, should be
celebrated in a cross country event.
It has had some high profile winners over the last few years. In 2012, international Junior, Michael Calligari of Shaftesbury
Barnet won from Highgate’s Ryan McKinley
(Now with the Police and Woodford Green AC).
Henry Dodwell, several times North London Champion from Highgate was third that day.
Only a short period before that Australian, Peter Nowill, the 2004 Olympic, steeplechaser, who at the time, was working at
the Royal Free Hospital, won for Highgate with James Trapmore of Shaftesbury Barnet second.
The Sorority Cup for women which was run as a combined race with the men was added and the records go back
to 2003 so, not so very old.
This year, JAMES WOOLDRIDGE, (U18), went ahead in the second of three laps to win, over the slippery course from the recent
rains.
“I had kind of grown up with the course at Trent Park, having done the North West London Young Athletes league races several
times on it so, I knew, the course like the back of my hand and where to test the opposition on the course.”
He
added “You can’t always predict the conditions or who you will be up against. I got good assistance from my team
mate from London Heathside, Adam Kirk-Smith. It was out on the extension I just tried to see how the others would react. You
have to know the course or you can pay for it later so, I stayed behind at the start. It was just a matter of executing on
the hill the second time around.‘
‘I was pleased with my last Metropolitan League at Stevenage coming 27th. I am always targeting the top 30. To be in the
top 30, is good as the standard is high in the Met League. You are mixing it with the best league runners in the country’
He then said. I am going to go to University next year to study history and politics’
‘I consider myself a track runner, as I have done 1.59 for 800 but as I had been doing exams I did not get a faster time. As
I am half South African I may do some training, before university, out in Africa”
Nick Sturge (Trent Park) and Daniel Carpenter lead after the first small lap with Adam Kirk-Smith and Wooldridge, running
together, fifteen metres behind that.
When Wooldridge went Kirk-Smith assumed a good second place with Carpenter taking the third spot.
Stacey Ward was running with the first fifteen men on the first lap, to assure herself of victory for the Sorority Cup. She
considered her first ever half marathon, when winning at Fleet in March 2015 (75.42), was her best performance. She now lives
at Ruislip and trains with Gerry Archer’s group at Hillingdon AC but, is first claim Herne Hill Harriers on the track,
where her coach is Jeff Jerwood. She ran 2nd in a BMC race at Oxford, over 5k in 16.19.
It was interesting to see Rhian Ravenscroft of Highgate coming 8th of the 44 women, considering that till the recent London
Championships she was out of athletics since 2013 with leg problems which culminated in an operation.
First Three Men and first teams:- 1 James Wooldridge (London Heathside) 27,42; 2 Adam Kirk-Smith (London
Heathside) 27.44; 3 Daniel Carpenter (U20, Enfield & Haringey) 28.03.
Winning team- Men & Women Barnet & District AC. (162 finished the Men’s race).
First 3 women 1 Stacey Ward (Hillingdon AC) 30.11; 2 Jo Kent (Barnet & District AC, W45) 32.17; 3 Charlotte Johnson
(Shaftesbury Barnet (U20) 33.07.
Alastair Aitken
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