High winds lead to a wave of cancellations including the Southern England Inter-County and Masters Champs in Croydon and the English Schools Cross Cup in Leeds.
Legendary endurance coach George Gandy once said that the word ‘cancel’ should not be part of a cross-country runner’s vocabulary.” Perhaps it once was, but Hurricane Darragh led to a wave of cancellations over the weekend (December 7-8).
The old timers will tell you the events used to go ahead regardless of the weather, however, modern athletics is hampered by health and safety guidelines, meaning you can guarantee that many more matches will be called off in the coming months.
Among the victims of Storm Darragh were the Southern England Cross Country and Masters Cross Country Championships at Lloyd Park in Croydon on Saturday. the association canceled the big event on the morning of the race due to strong winds.
The late decision led to a wave of criticism on social media as many athletes had already started their journey to the course, although there were many athletes and coaches who were also sympathetic to the organisers.
SoEAA Endurance Working Group Chair David Harris said: “We deeply regret that the meeting had to be cancelled, but this was due to safety concerns. The extremely strong winds caused the portable toilets to move and blow over one of the organizers. There were also some branches that blew over the wooded area of the course.
“We were also unable to set up the tents and gazebos needed for athlete registration, official check-in, etc., as that would have been nearly impossible with storm conditions that showed no signs of abating.”
He added: “This was not an easy decision to make. Nobody wants to have to cancel an event, but the primary concern, as always, is the safety of the athletes, officials and spectators.
“The referee felt there was no choice but to cancel the event. Every effort was made to contact the teams and officials to advise them that the competition would not take place. It is hoped that the association can reschedule the match and consider it.” alternative dates”.
Masters athlete Leslie Richardson said: “Gone are the days when we raced regardless of the weather and didn’t get any damage. What a shame.”
Cornelia Abe-Minale, coach of Victoria Park & Tower Hamlets, said: Why are we giving our young athletes the message that we can only compete in good weather?’
English Schools Cross Country Cup
The English Schools Cross Country Cup at Leeds Grammar School has been given more notice when the English Schools AA decided on Thursday (December 5) to postpone their event from December 7 to March 1. the
The ESAA turned off comments on their Facebook post, but one of their officials, Ken Burkett, said: “It was the fact that we were seeing winds in excess of 40mph in a part of Leeds that gets significantly stronger winds than lower in the city. It’s in an area surrounded by trees and it wouldn’t be safe or right to run through the woods.” :
Organizers are undoubtedly in an insurmountable position when the weather turns bad, but the ESAA’s decision to call off the event is in stark contrast to the English Schools Cross Country Championships in March 2018, which were hit by bitterly cold winds dubbed the ‘mini’ : beast from the east” parallel to the snowfall.
On that occasion, the organizers spread an exciting message on the day of the race, telling the young athletes: “It was their chance to denounce the growing perception that children are ‘snowflakes’ these days. Lift it up.” Run. Have a cold. Cloudy. Enjoy the heat again. This is proper Mediterranean weather.”
Competitors who braved the cold at Temple Newsam in Leeds that day included Keely Hodgkinson, who finished second to Ella McNiven before making the Olympic podium three years later.
English Schools Cross Country Cup too advanced to Newquay in 2021 despite the strong winds.
READ MORE. Euro Cross 2024 coverage
Further events that have been canceled in recent days due to the Storm include the Manchester Cross Country League at Woodbank Park. “Looking at the forecast wind speeds, they exceed the UKA’s safety guidelines and obviously we have a duty of care to all concerned. The warning also now extends to safe travel,” said league president Nick Bishop.
The Borders XC event at Spittal in Northumberland, the East Yorkshire League at Ravenscar and the Lincolnshire Runner Cross Country League at Louth have also been called off.
The Oxford-Cambridge Varsity cross-country clash continued, but Olympians Jared Ward and Niamh Bridson Hubbard took the lead over a grueling course that included a river crossing.
Varsity Match (Graham Smith)
Full coverage here.
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