A busy weekend lies ahead for athletics enthusiasts as well as athletes this weekend with the last of this season’s Brooks Sussex Cross-country League races commanding most interest among Sussex athletes.
The County are also holding their County Indoor championships this weekend, on Saturday and Sunday at the Sutton Arena while some two hundred miles away in Sheffield the National Indoor championships, which incorporate the Trials for the European Indoor championships at being held at Sheffield, also on Saturday and Sunday.
Only a handful of the top Sussex athletes like Charlie Grice (Phoenix), Seb Rodger from Eastbourne and Lee Emanuel from Hastings, who has been showing great form over two miles in the US, will be seeking a place in the Great Britain team.
Emanuel, the reigning 1500m champion will be stepping up to the 3,000m, where he will be joined by English Schools senior 1500m champion Robbie Fitzgibbon (Phoenix) while Grice will be aiming to keep the 1500m title in Sussex and he is the only runner in the field who has the standard for a place in the team. Rodger will be aiming for a place in the 400m squad which will be very tough for him.
The League event that has had to be switched from Bexhill to Lancing and starts at 12.30 will see the crowning of this season’s League champions.
The individual titles on the best of three runs and already George Pool (Hastings) U13, India Spoor (Worthing) U20W and Martha Coyle (Brighton & Hove) U17W are assured of taking crowns.
Both the senior titles will be decided at Lancing and currently Brittany Saville (Worthing) leads her event with 11 points, three points clear of Lara Barrazzuoi (Lewes) who is on 14 points.
Also in the frame must be Emma Macready (Worthing), who has two points from two races and Emily Proto (Arena 80), three points also from two races and if either of them race Saturday they could take the crown. Macready however may decide to go indoors and race over 3,000m at Sheffield.
Max Dumbrell (Brighton & Hove) leads the men’s competition but oft times League Champion has three points from two races and should he compete than he could take the crown.
There are similar situations in the Men’s U15 and U 20 group and the girl’s U13 and U15 but in the U17M Aiden Briffett (Lewes), Casey Keates (Chichester) and Dan Stidder (Eastbourne) have completed three races and are all on 10 points so whichever of these three get the better of Saturday’s encounter are likely to take the title.