Everything you need to know about the European Cross Country Trials at Sefton Park.
The Liverpool Cross Challenge, one of the most anticipated events in the British cross country calendar, takes place this Saturday (November 23rd) at Sefton Park.
The event doubles as trials for the upcoming European Cross Country Championships, with the athletes aiming to secure a place for the British team that will travel to Lagos next month.
Up to six athletes can be selected for the Under-23s and Under-20s. The first four placed senior/under 23 athletes and the first five under 20 athletes will be automatically selected for the team.
The Cardiff Cross Challenge was the official trial race for the Euro Cross Senior Mixed Relay, with Jack Higgins and Holly Dixon already securing their selection. The remaining two seats (one male and one female) will be decided by the selection committee.
There is no official trial race for next year’s world championships in Tallahassee (January 10) but selection priority, excluding the senior medley relay, will be based on performances in both Liverpool and Eurocross.
The qualifying meet for Euro Cross is on November 24th and for World Cross on December 16th.
Senior women
Kate Axford is aiming to make it back to back after her impressive 16-second victory in the senior women’s race at last year’s competition. The Belgrave Harrier has already had a great season, anchoring his club to victory at the England National Cross Country Relays in Mansfield earlier this month.
However, he faces stiff opposition from a talented field led by Abbie Donnelly. This will be Donnelly’s first race since he clocked 2:24:11 at the Frankfurt Marathon last month. The Lincoln Wellington AC athlete finished seventh on the UK all-time list behind that race, but now turns her attention to Liverpool, where she is looking to make another British team for Euro Cross.
Donnelly may not have competed since Frankfurt, but she was champion in Liverpool two years ago and also secured bronze in the senior women’s race at the 2023 Liverpool Cross Challenge.
Megan Keith, who was the first Briton in the Cardiff Cross Challenge, is not on the entry list, so perhaps opening the door for others to shine in the Welsh capital, such as Poppy Tank and Amelia Quirk.
The forecast for Saturday is wet, with muddy conditions likely to affect both Jess Gibbon and Kerry Hughes. In this year’s English National Championships, Gibbon took victory on the extremely muddy Parliament Hill. Meanwhile, Hughes, at a slippery Sefton Park stadium, finished second to Oxford in last year’s Liverpool Cross Challenge.
Izzy Fry, the 2022 World University champion who is also fourth in this year’s British 10,000m, will also be a threat.
Others to look out for include Lucy Jones, Sarah Astin, Esme Davies and Amelia Quirk.
Senior men
This year’s senior men’s race looks pretty wide open on paper. If Rory Leonard can translate his excellent road success to cross-country this season, he will be a strong contender to win at Liverpool.
Back in January, the Morpeth Harriers AC athlete beat Mo Farah’s British record of 27:38 in the Spanish city in the 10km race in Valencia back in January. He then finished third in the over 5000m at the British Athletics Championships.
Leonard finished fifth at last year’s Liverpool Cross Challenge but then took an impressive ninth at the Euro Cross in Antalya.
Zac Mahamed was also part of that British team and he should be confident of going this year after he was the first Brit to finish fourth overall at the Cardiff Cross Challenge.
His brother, Mohamed Mohamed, has not run this year’s London Marathon since clocking 2:08:52, but has cross-country pedigree, finishing third at Parliament Hill in last season’s British Athletics Cross Challenge.
Scott Beattie, who like Leonard represents Morpeth Harriers AC, could be one to watch if the course is muddy given he finished third in tough conditions at last year’s Liverpool Cross Challenge.
Based on current form, Jacob Cann can’t be discounted either. This will be the Western Tempo athlete’s 10th cross country race this year and he arrives in Liverpool off the back of a dominant win at the Birmingham Cross Country League and fifth place at the Cardiff Cross Challenge.
In similar fashion to Leonard, if Alfie Manthorpe can turn his incredible road form into success, then he has every chance at Liverpool. The Hallamshire athlete ran a fine 61:26 at the Valencia Half Marathon, bettering his personal best by more than nine minutes.
Having finished sixth in the Cardiff Cross Challenge, Richard Slade could do well for Liverpool. Other names to look out for include Callum Johnson, Charlie Wheeler and Jack Cavanagh.
U23/U20 athletes
Again the under-23s will compete at the same time as the seniors, but will be drawn for the finish at earlier stages.
Meg Gadsby will be looking to retain their title at Sefton Park, having won impressively in last year’s fixture. Her closest challenge would come from Mia Waldman, who finished third and 10 seconds behind Gadsby in Liverpool. Other notable names include the likes of Megan Harris, Emily Parker and Rebecca Flaherty.
Will Barnicoat is likely to go into the men’s race as a strong favourite. Having won the Liverpool Cross Challenge last year, he then went on to retain his European under-23 crown, beating Ireland’s Nick Griggs by just one second in Antalya. Henry Jonas and Ossian Perrin could do well.
Expect Innes Fitzgerald to dominate the under-20 women’s race. Looking unbeaten in her age group again, the Exeter-based athlete won the Cardiff Cross Challenge by an extraordinary 50 seconds. He is also the reigning two-time European Under-20 champion.
Just six seconds separated the top four in last year’s men’s under-20 race and expect a similarly close battle again on Saturday. With 2024 winner Henry Jonas stepping up to the under-23s, it opens the door for others. William Rabjohns is the first name to spring to mind, given the Poole AC athlete won this season’s Cardiff Cross Challenge and also finished second to Jonas at Liverpool.
Other contenders include Quinn Miele-Ingram, Dillon Millard and Jack Marwood.
Schedule:
10:55 a.m – U11 boys (2 km)
11:05 a.m – U11 girls (2 km)
11:15 – U13 girls (3 km)
11:30 a.m – U13 boys (3 km)
11:45 a.m – U15 boys (3 km)
12:00 p.m – U15 girls (3 km)
12:15 p.m – U17 Women and Junior Women U20 European Trials (4km)
12:35 p.m – U17 Men’s and Youth Men’s U20 European Trials (4.4 km)
12:55 p.m – Senior Women + U23 Women’s European Trial (8km and 5.6km respectively)
14:00 – Senior Men + U23 Women’s European Trial (8 km and 5.6 km respectively)
More information about the event can be found here here.
