CUH&H Press Officers, Polly Keen and Declan Murray, commentate on Cuppers Cross Country
The weather may have been non-descript but the races were far from plain at the 2009 Cuppers Cross-Country Championships (doubling as the Varsity selection races) at Wandlebury Country Park on Saturday 21st November.
Guest runner Ian Williamson of Cambridge and Coleridge Athletics Club took it out hard on the first of three laps of the 10km race stringing the Men’s field out behind him. However, as the runners started out on the second loop, Williamson was overtaken by Darwin fresher, Soeren Lindner. The German Lindner then managed to hold off defending champion James Kelly of Jesus until the final circuit when the former Harvard student took lead and ultimately his third consecutive Cuppers victory with a time of 32.46. Whilst the lead kept changing at the front Downing’s Chris Bannon ran a well-executed race to take the bronze medal behind Lindner and secure his place in the Blues team for the second year running.
In the team event the Jesuits once again staved off close opposition from nearest rivals Downing with Kelly being joined by Sam Ashcroft (11th), Jamie Brunning (13th), Rowan Brackston (16th), Liam Richardson (26th) and Guy Salimbeni (40th) to take the title for an incredible 5th consecutive year.
Meanwhile, in the Ladies Race it was another returning champion, Naomi Taschimowitz, from Trinity who took home the trophy posting a rapid 22.28 for the 6km course. Unlike in the Men’s Race, however, Taschimowitz led it out from the gun at such a pace that even Churchill’s Amanda Scott couldn’t keep up leaving her to settle for a secure second place in 23.15. The excitement came further down the field with first-year Mairead Rocke running herself through the field and into the Blues team in just her first term at Cambridge. The final places in the 6-membered women’s blues team were an extremely closely fought battle with 4th to 7th positions separated by a mere 7 seconds. It was Robinson’s Lowri Richards who after 12 months of injuries and rehabilitation finally managed to prove her potential taking her place at the top of the IInds Team (‘The Cheetahs’) for next week’s Varsity Match in Oxford.
As ever, the Ladies Team event was a closely fought affair with Emmanuel just coming out on top from Trinity and Jesus. The team packed well with Rose Penfold (11th) leading the pink college home followed closely by Christie Noble (12th) and Cat Bounds (13th) to improve on their 3rd place finish of 2008.
After posting some markedly faster times over the Cuppers course last weekend the Cambridge teams will travel to Shotover Common, Oxford on Saturday confident in the knowledge that they have not had a team this strong for a long time. The pain will be temporary. But the glory will last forever. GDBO!