St Neots cross-country event proves tough going for Thetford Athletic Club members

Seven athletes from Thetford Athletic Club braved another damp drizzly Sunday morning and headed up the A1 to St Neots in Bedfordshire to take part in a cross-country event.

With the promise of a fast, flat course on offer, the athletes had their sights set on some personal best times.

With a large entry of nearly 1,000 runners it was hard work for each competitor to make the room for themselves that they needed to put in a good performance and space was at a premium.

However, the promise of a flat course was misleading as the course could, at best, be described as undulating and took the athletes along country roads and through several Bedfordshire villages.

Tony Cantle was the first Thetford athlete home in a time of 1:34:45 and 213th position, followed by Tony Tyler in 246th place with a time of 1:36:06.

Cliff Lear crossed the line in 1:38:57 and was the 300th athlete to finish the race, with Sean West behind in 335th position, running a time of 1:40:05.

Gill Paremain was the first female athlete from Thetford to finish, in 595th position with a time of 1:53:13, followed by Corrina Smith in 650th place, who ran 1:56:54.

Claire Goldstone was the final Thetford runner to cross the line, finishing in a time of 2:01:05 and 735th position.