Parliament Hill Fields, Hampstead Heath, London hosted the forty-sixth English Junior Men's National Cross-Country Championships. Many people consider Parliament Hill to be the 'home' of English cross-country. The course was described as combining hard climbs and deep mud along with fast stretches and consisted of two large laps plus the start and finishing straights making a total of 10 kilometres. Part of the course previously used was unavailable due to the installation of a gas main and a new course had to be devised. The major sponsor for this National Championship was the Corporation of London who are custodians of the Heath.
At the end of the first lap the lead group consisted of Tim Dickinson (Blackheath Harriers), Kaesa Tadese (Belgrave Harriers), Steffan White (Coventry Godiva Harriers) and Spencer Barden (GEC Avionics). With a mile to go Tadesse and White were side by side with Barden and Dickinson fighting for the bronze medal. Coming down the hill to the finish White led by 10 metres, Tadesse was unable to close the gap and White won in 29:42, Tadesse second and Barden edged Dickinson for third.
White told Athletics Weekly: "I had to have a steady start because I am not fit enough for a fast one. I just covered every break. To be honest, I'd forgotten all about Tadesse until I heard one or two from Belgrave shouting, 'Come on Kaesa'. Three-quarters of the way into the second lap I thought he was toying with me. He was looking pretty cool. But I put a spurt in with probably three-quarters of a mile to go and kept on putting on a kick in. I am ecstatic. After all, it's my first major title."
Home | 1876-1914 | 1920-1939 | 1946-1999 | 2000-present