US runners Garrett Heath and Chris Derrick repeated their success of 12 months ago when they ran out as winners again at the Great Edinburgh XCountry, an IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting, on Saturday (10).Heath won over 4km in the Scottish capital&rsquo;s famous Holyrood Park, the venue for the 2008 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, while Derrick successfully defended his title over 8km.However, there was plenty for the home crowd to cheer during the women&rsquo;s 6km race as Great Britain&rsquo;s Emelia Gorecka put behind her a disappointing outing at the European Cross Country Championships last month to get a surprise win.Heath was the first to take the plaudits.Kenya&rsquo;s&nbsp;2008 Olympic Games gold medallist and two-time world 1500m champion&nbsp;Asbel Kiprop&nbsp;led during the early stages of the race, picking his way through some of the deeper mud passages, but the pace was pedestrian enough for the likes of Heath, fellow US runner Dathan Ritzenhein and Great Britain&rsquo;s Tom Lancashire to follow him comfortably.By halfway, Kenya&rsquo;s world cross-country champion&nbsp;Japhet Korir and his compatriot Thomas Longosiwa had got back in touch with the leaders and fellow Kenyans Augustine Choge and Jairus Birech were closing on the leaders as well. However, the picture changed once Heath went to the front at the start of the second 2km lap with only Korir for company as the others started to drop back.Much to many people&rsquo;s surprise, it was the US athlete who proved the stronger. With one kilometre to go, Heath had an advantage of about 20 metres and he gradually pulled further away from his Kenyan rival to cross the line in 12:11. &ldquo;After the first lap no one was pushing the pace. I thought they were either waiting or tired, so I said to myself I will try and go for it,&rdquo; said the 29 year-old Heath, generally known as a 1500m specialist.Korir finished eight seconds adrift on the muddy course and third went to Ritzenhein in&nbsp;12:27. Kiprop, the 2012 winner in this race, had to settle for fourth place on this occasion while Lancashire was the first Briton across the line in fifth.<h3>Derrick defends </h3> Derrick then added to a successful day for the men from across the Atlantic. He controlled proceedings from the front early on and, regularly joined by Great Britain&rsquo;s Charlie Hulson at the front, they led the big, compact field at halfway with Spain&rsquo;s 2013 European cross-country champion Alemayehu Bezabeh close on their heels.However, the 24 year-old defending champion Derrick continued to push the pace on the third lap. As Bezabeh started to struggle, US runners dominated the leading group with Jacob Riley, Craig Forys and Reed Connor following Derrick. Britain&rsquo;s Johnny Hay was the only non-US runner who could stay with them during the third circuit.As the runners heard the bell, Derrick was 15 metres ahead of Riley with the others another 15 metres back and the leading pair continued to duel over the final lap although the former was always in command.&ldquo;It was a really hard race on a tough course,&rdquo; said Derrick, who had to fend off a late surge by Riley, a former Stanford University team-mate of the winner. &ldquo;Fortunately the final part was downhill,&rdquo; he added, after crossing the line in 25:31, just two seconds ahead of Riley.&nbsp; &ldquo;I know Jacob well, he is a tough competitor,&rdquo; said Derrick, who is now focused on making the US team that will contest the 2015 IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Guiyang, China, on 28 March.Derrick finished an excellent 10th at the last edition of the World Cross Country Championships two years ago, and was instrumental in the USA taking an unexpected set of silver medals in the senior men's team competition.Hay was third in 25:36 with Connor and Hulson following him home in fourth and fifth in 25:38 and 25:39.<h3>Gorecka runs "best race of your life" </h3> However, the 20-year-old Gorecka metaphorically brought the house down in the final race of the day when she won in 21:36 to beat Ireland&rsquo;s two-time European cross-country champion Fionnuala Britton by seven seconds. Spain&rsquo;s Trihas Gebre, like Britton part of a European team, was a further 17 seconds behind.The trio were together after 4km, just after the start of the last lap, but Gorecka timed her surge to perfection.&ldquo;I was waiting with my final surge. Only when my coach shouted that I should go with one kilometre left that I pushed the pace,&rdquo; said Gorecka, who immediately built a lead of about 10 metres before emerging as a comfortable winner.&ldquo;Especially after coming away from Bulgaria, there was no better way to come back,&rdquo; added Gorecka, after what the former European cross-country junior champion described as one of the best runs of her life.&ldquo;I was in really good shape in Bulgaria but things weren&rsquo;t quite right with me. The best way to put things right is go back and run the best race of your life, which is pretty much what just happened. It's my first major senior win. It feels amazing. I tried to run smart and clever and fight with all my heart.&rdquo;Great Britain's European cross-country champion Gemma Steel sadly had a race to forget after her recent triumphs, which also included a win in Madrid's famous San Silvestre Vallecana 10km road race on New Year's Eve. Steel lost contact with the leaders just after halfway and finally finished in 11th place with 22:25.The men's 8km and women's 6km races, as well as two junior races, counted towards what has now become an annual team competition. The USA dominated this contest with a tally of 121 points. Europe and Great Britain followed in second and third with 189 and 223 points respectively.The junior men&rsquo;s 6km race was won by Italy&rsquo;s European cross-country junior champion Yemaneberhan Crippa in 19:57. He finished well ahead of the two US runners, Cerake Geberkidane and Olin Hacker, who were second and third in 20:07 and 20:08 respectively. The USA's Makena Morley also had a comfortable advantage in the junior women&rsquo;s 4km. She clocked 14:40 to beat her compatriot Anna Rohrer by seven seconds, with Denmark's Anna-Emilie Moller, representing Europe, in third in 15:02.J&ouml;rg Wenig for the IAAF

US runners Garrett Heath and Chris Derrick repeated their success of 12 months ago when they ran out as winners again at the Great Edinburgh XCountry, an IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting, on Saturday (10).

Derrick, Heath and Gorecka triumph at Great Edinburgh XCountry

France’s Sophie Duarte had finished sixth at the past two editions of the European Cross Country Championships but on Sunday (8) in Belgrade the 32-year-old struck gold in the senior women’s race.Meanwhile, Alemayehu Bezabeh regained the senior men’s title he won four years ago, leading Spain to team honours too. For the 11th year in succession, Britain topped the medals table after winning four of the six team titles as well as the junior women’s gold.Having made history 12 months ago by becoming the first back-to-back senior women’s winner, Ireland’s Fionnuala Britton was looking to secure an unprecedented third consecutive title. But from the outset it was clear that it was going to be tough as Norway’s Caroline Bjerkeli Grovdal audaciously shot into the lead.The former three-time European junior gold medallist led by three seconds after just the first lap of the 8km race. Grovdal was reeled in 1.5km later and a seven-woman lead pack had emerged. It comprised Grovdal, Britton, Ana Dulce Felix, British pair Gemma Steel and Julia Bleasdale, Belgium’s Almensch Belete and Sophie Duarte of France.The pack continued to extend their lead and by the end of the third lap it was Duarte who led from Steel with the other five still close behind. One kilometre later, Duarte put in an injection of pace; a move that proved decisive.As the bell sounded, Duarte’s lead had grown to five seconds as Felix and Steel were locked in their own battle to decide the other medals. Britton, meanwhile, has holding on as best she could in fourth place, still hopeful of a podium finish.Duarte’s lead was never challenged and she won in 26:34. Having been overtaken by Felix, Steel came back to take silver ahead of the European 10,000m champion as Britton had to settle for fourth place."It’s my first medal at cross country and it’s important because you have all runners from marathon to 5000m and 10,000m all in the same race," said Duarte. "I finished second European at the World Cross earlier this year, so I’m happy to have got the gold."My coach wanted me to push on the last lap, but I could sense that the other women were tired so I pushed two laps from home and destroyed the field."I have now entered the second part of my career," added Duarte, who holds the French Steeplechase record at 9:25.62. "I used be to a Steeplechase specialist but now I’m focusing on the 5000m and 10,000m. Cross country is very important to be strong on the track and in the Marathon."With their four scorers in the top 15, Britain were comfortable winners of the team title. Duarte added to her tally as France took team silver.In the senior men’s race, Turkey’s Polat Kemboi Arikan, one of the medal favourites, tripped over a log before the end of the first lap and crashed to the ground. Fortunately for him, it happened early on in the race and he had plenty of time to recover.Alemayehu Bezabeh, meanwhile, made no such mistakes on the 10km course and began building up his lead early in the race. At 4km, he led by five seconds over a three-man chase pack which comprised Arikan, Belgium’s Bashir Abdi, and Hassan Chahdi of France.Little changed up front as the Spaniard continued to increase his lead, the title looking more and more certain with each lap. With 3km remaining, Arikan was out on his own as Bezabeh’s sole pursuer. Abdi was still in third with Belgian team-mate Jeroen D’Hoedt a few seconds behind.Bezabeh eventually crossed the line the clear winner, stopping the clock in 29:11. Arikan finished 21 seconds behind as Bezabeh recorded the biggest winning margin in this event since 2004. Britain’s Andy Vernon unleashed a ferocious sprint as the bronze medal was decided in a photo finish, Vernon being given the verdict over D’Hoedt.Helped by Bezabeh’s win, Spain took the team title with Belgium earning the silver ahead of Britain.Hannes and Hassan take under-23 titlesSifan Hassan of the Netherlands ran out a clear winner of the under-23 women’s 6km race, but did so with such ease that it looked as though she could have placed well in the senior race too.Ethiopian-born Hassan gained a Dutch passport just a few weeks ago, having lived in the Netherlands since her early teens. Now 20, Hassan impressed on the track this year, setting PBs of 2:00.86 for 800m, 4:03.73 for 1500m and 8:32.53 for 3000m.It wasn’t until half way into the under-23 women’s race that a lead pack began to emerge. Former junior winner Charlotte Purdue was doing most of the pace-making work, closely followed by Hassan and last year’s junior winner, Amela Terzic, the host nation’s best hope of a medal.But by the end of the third lap, Hassan had moved into the lead and began to open up daylight on her pursuers. Hassan’s lead grew to six seconds by the time she crossed the finish line in 19:40, with Terzic taking silver ahead of Purdue.With five of their six athletes in the top 10, Britain took the team honours.For the third year in succession, a 1500m specialist won the under-23 men’s 8km race. Belgium’s Pieter-Jan Hannes followed in the footsteps of fellow middle-distance talents Florian Carvalho and Henrik Ingebrigtsen.Hannes, the European under-23 1500m champion, bided his time and waited until the closing stages to sprint to victory. Britain’s Dewi Griffiths and Luke Caldwell took turns at leading, but through the changes of leaders, Hannes was always tucked in closely near the front.Bulgaria’s Mitko Tsenov moved through the field and joined the leaders with just a few kilometres left. But ultimately no one could match Hannes’ finishing speed and he won in 24:02, celebrating some 100 metres from the finish.Tesnov took silver, while Serbia’s Nemanja Cerovac delighted the home crowd with a surprise bronze. As the only team to place four runners in the top 20, Britain took team gold.Junior track champions Kaya and Gorecka triumph on the mudEarlier this year Turkey’s Ali Kaya and Britain’s Emelia Gorecka took gold medals on the track at the European Junior Championships in Reiti; Kaya winning the 5000m-10,000m double and Gorecka winning the 3000m. Today in Belgrade the pair scooped continental age-group titles on the cross-country.First up was Gorecka, who won this title in 2011 and was beaten to gold 12 months ago by Terzic. With Terzic now in the older age group, the Briton was the favourite for the junior title and she duly delivered.The 19-year-old led from the outset and made an early break in the 4km race. At the end of the 2.5km lap, Gorecka already had a five-second lead over Slovenia’s Marusa Mismas, the European junior Steeplechase silver medallist.Gorecka continued to forge ahead and crossed the line in 13:06, ten seconds ahead of her nearest challenger. Another European junior silver medallist, Poland’s 1500m specialist Sofia Ennaoui, overtook Mismas in the second half of the race to take silver with Mismas holding on for third.For the 10th time in the past 12 editions of the championships, Britain won the junior women’s team title with five of their six athletes finishing in the top 13.The junior men’s race was the closest of the day. Kaya and Belgium’s Isaac Kimeli opened up a gap on the large chase pack before the half-way mark.The only other athlete capable of sticking with them initially was Russia’s Mikhail Strelkov, but by the end of the third of four 1.5km laps he was running in no-man’s land; six seconds adrift of the leaders and eight seconds ahead of the main chase pack.Kaya and Kimeli continued to extend their lead in the closing stages. Kimeli overtook Kaya close to the finish and it looked as though he may snatch the victory, but Kaya responded and came through to win in 17:49, two seconds ahead of Kimeli.Strelkov held on for third place, scoring valuable points for Russia as his team took silver behind France.Jon Mulkeen for the IAAF

France’s Sophie Duarte had finished sixth at the past two editions of the European Cross Country Championships but on Sunday (8) in Belgrade the 32-year-old struck gold in the senior women’s race.

Third time lucky for Duarte at European Cross as Bezabeh regains title

7 December 2012 – Budapest, Hungary – Hungary stages the SPAR European Cross Country Championships for the first time with the venue being the town of Szentendre, which is on the banks of the Danube just north of the Hungarian capital. Belgium’s Atelaw Bekele and Ireland’s Fionnuala Britton will both return to defend the titles they won in 2011 on Sunday (9).In addition, Great Britain’s 2011 junior girl’s winner Emelia Gorecka does not turn 19 until next month and the 2012 IAAF World Junior Championships 3000m bronze medallist is eligible to try for a second gold medal.Senior menBekele is still striving to recover his best shape after suffering illness and injury earlier in the year - an Achilles problem and then a virus caught while training in his native Ethiopia - which caused him to miss the entire summer. He showed a glimmer of the form he showed 12 months ago when he finished fifth on home soil at the recent top-quality European Athletics Cross Country Permit Meeting in Roeselaere but the mantle of pre-race favourite over 10km this time around falls on the shoulders of Ayad Lamdessem, the silver medallist in 2010 and 2011.Lamdassem showed he is coming good at the right time when he finished second, and was the leading European, at the Cross de Alcobendas in Spain on 25 November.Another man bidding to get on the podium again will be Portugal’s Jose Rocha, last year’s bronze medallist, who battled through tough conditions to win the Portuguese selection race at the Cross de Torres Vedras last month.Two other names to mention are Turkey’s 2012 European 10,000m champion Polat Kemboi Arikan, although he has little Cross Country form, and Ukraine’s evergreen nine-time champion Serhiy Lebid, who has competed in every edition of the Championships since they started in 1994.Senior womenBritton ran away with the 8km race from the halfway point last year but it will be a surprise if she wins with the same ease this time year, despite her recent performance when finishing third, and the leading European, at the European Athletics Cross Country Permit Meeting in Leffrinckoucke, France on 25 November.Massed against her will be several good Portuguese runners including last year’s silver medallist Ana Dulce Felix, the 10,000m winner at the European Athletics Championships last summer.Felix has won two high quality Cross Country races in recent weeks, including a win in the Dutch city of Tilburg by five seconds from The Netherlands’ hope, Adrienne Herzog, who was fifth in 2011.Spain’s Diana Martin has also been in splendid form in races at home and the steeplechaser looks set to improve significantly on her previous best position of 14th from two years ago. Under 23 menThere’s no doubting the track pedigree of Azerbaijan's Hayle Ibrahimov as he has won European senior medals both indoors and out, and clocked 13:11.34 over 5000m in the summer but he has never ran in an international Cross Country race and so there must be a big question mark over how he will fare. If Ibrahimov falters in the mud, then Great Britain’s 2011 silver medallist James Wilkinson could step up a place on the podium.Spain’s Abdelaziz Merzoughi has tasted victory in this event in the past, having won the 2010 junior title, and shows all the signs in his Spanish outings over the last month of being to the fore again.Belarus's Siarhei Platonau could also be a factor, having finished fifth last year and improved significantly on the track this summer and it would also be unwise to discount Denmark’s Abdi Ulad after his impressive effort to take the Nordic senior title last month.Another interesting Scandinavian runner on the start line of this race will be the 2012 European 1500m champion Henrik Ingebrigtsen who was 15th in Velenje.Under 23 womenThis has all the signs of being a very high quality race but the marginal favourite seems to be Great Britain’s Jess Coulson.Still only 22, Coulson finishing a fine third at the IAAF Cross Country Permit Meeting, Cross Internacional de Atapuerca, in Spain on 11 November, when she came home a place in front of the European senior champion Fionnuala Britton. She followed this up with a win over other experienced runners at the UK trials in Liverpool two weeks later.Germany’s Corinna Harrer took the bronze medal in this category 12 months ago and clearly could make the top three again. Although she is primarily a 1500m runner, she reduced her personal bests over a variety of distances by big margins during the summer.However, on a heavy course in Darmstadt last month, she was beaten into second place by Switzerland’s Fabienne Schlumpf, who could bid for her country’s first medal since 2000.Junior men and womenThis 6km junior men’s race could be wide open race as only one man from last year’s top 10, Great Britain’s Kieran Clements (who was ninth), will be on the start line this time around.Norway’s Filip Ingebrigtsen, younger brother of Henrik, and Croatia’s Dino Bosnjak were the leading European finishers in the 2012 IAAF World Junior Championships 1500m and 5000m respectively and could transform their track talent to a different surface.It is difficult to look beyond Gorecka for the gold medal in the junior women’s 4km race but if anyone if to beat her then it is likely to be Serbia’s Amela Terzic, second and third in 2010 and 2011 respectively.Great Britain have also named Jessica Judd, the 2012 World Junior Championships 800m silver medallist in their squad.A record 539 athletes and 35 countries have entered this year’s Championships.Phil Minshull for the IAAF

Bekele, Britton and Gorecka back to defend European titles

7 December 2012 – Budapest, Hungary – Hungary stages the SPAR European Cross Country Championships for the first time with the venue being the town of Szentendre, which is on the banks of the Danube just north of the Hungarian capital. Belgium’s Atelaw Bekele and Ireland’s Fionnuala Britton will both return to defend the titles they won in 2011 on Sunday (9).