STRATFORD AC’s Alex Adams ran to victory at the Midlands Cross Country Championships in the under-17 Men’s race.
Alex won in a time of 19 minutes 45 seconds over 6 kilometres at a blustery Berry Hill Park in Mansfield.
The Stratford athlete produced a superb solo run to win by 11 seconds which marked one of the biggest margins of the day.
Alex previously won silver at the under-15 Championships in 2020 and was last victorious at the event when he won the under-13 title.
Taylor Stubbins was next home for Stratford in 31st, improving from 76th in 2020 whilst Theo Skirvin completed the team with a fine run in 37th.
And Georgie Campbell also impressed in the under-20 Women’s race as she came home fourth, narrowly missing out on the medals.
Campbell won the under-17’s race in 2020 and will head into next week’s British Universities Championships with confidence.
In the first race of the day, Marijke Tear-Verweij finished in 25th for the under-13 Girls to confirm her place in the Warwickshire team for March.
Only two under-13 Boys ran for Stratford, after the squad was badly hit by Covid, with Aran Cooper first home in 24th in 11 mins 27 secs with Alfie Musk finishing well in 52nd in 12 mins 51 secs.
And the under-15 Girls were also badly hit by withdrawals with the ever reliable Niamh Hillard improving up to 23rd whilst Abbi Cooper finished just inside the top-50 and Tilly Campbell came home in 71st – 27 places further up the field from 2020.
Also impacted by Covid and injuries, the under-15 Boys team produced strong runs with James Day 33rd, improving from 75th in 2020, Seb Hillard 59th, improving from 89th in 2020, Zak Lambert 67th, in his first race at this level, and Joe Lewis 73rd.
Emma Bexson was the sole Stratford runner in the senior Women’s race and her well-judged run saw her finish 59th, improving from 83rd in 2020, despite stumbling on a steep downhill slope near the finish.
And the final race of the day was the senior Men’s 12k with Stratford unable to complete a team due to only having three runners with Adam Linforth first home on debut in 147th in 46mins 13secs, followed by Max Ross 181st and John Raby 207th.
The Stratford team will now focus on their final league races of the season in mid-February, followed by the National Championships in February and March.
