24.09.2009

Aussies claim golden double in Keswick

Australians Martin Fryer and Jackie Fairweather have struck gold at the inaugural Commonwealth Mountain and Ultra Distance Running Championships in Keswick, England.

Fryer set a new Commonwealth record of 255.93km to claim the gold medal in the 24-hour event and joined with countrymen Jo Blake (second, 249.11km), John Pearson (seventh, 224.76km), Michael Lovric (14th, 203.55km), Mick Francis (165.23km) and Scott Orchard (20th, 94.522km) to claim the men’s team title.

Entering the race on the back of a stellar season that was highlighted by a win in the 48-hour event in Surgeres, France, in May, Fryer led for the majority of the race to claim a comprehensive win over the 21-man field.
 
In the women’s field, Aussie Susannah Harvey-Jamieson snatched the bronze medal with 206.98km behind England’s Sharon Gayter, who posted 226.49km.

Harvey-Jamieson was joined on the course by fellow Australians Meredith Quinlan (sixth, 200.69km), Sharon Scholz (eighth, 195.25km), Allison Lilley (12th, 187.63km), Deanne Nobbs (14th, 184.01km) and Kerrie Bremner (21st, 121.67km), who together claimed silver in the teams event.

Gayter, second place-getter Skelton and bronze medal-winner Harvey-Jamieson exchanged leads for the first third of the race but it was all Gayter in the later stages as the Englishwoman asserted her lead en route to victory.

In the 100km event, Australia’s Jackie Fairweather led from the gun to take out the women’s title in a time of 7:41.23, more than 20 minutes ahead of her nearest rival Emma Gooderham (ENG) in 8:04.09. Aussie Caroline Pivetta was also in action, crossing the line in 9:04.02.

Terence Bell was the best placed of the Australians in the men’s 100km event, stopping the clock at 7:16.56 to take out fourth place. Also in the field were Tim Cochrane (fifth, 7:20.49), Brendan Davies (ninth, 7:31.15) and Michael Baldock (14th, 7:51.07).

In a surprise result in the mountain running events Kenyan debutante Wilson Chemweno won the men’s uphill title, beating world champion Jonathan Wyatt (NZL) before going on to take out the up and down race.

Taking on the uphill challenge, a gruelling 931m ascent, were Aussies John Winsbury (19th, 56:42) and Stephen Brown (30th, 1:00.52) in the men’s event and Jessamy Hosking (ninth, 52:38) Hubertien Wichers (17th, 55:42), Kate Seibold-Crosbie (20th, 56:59) and June Petrie (21st, 57:14) in the women’s race.

New Zealander Anna Frost won the women’s title with England’s Katie Ingram and Rebecca Robinson close behind.

Winsbury and Brown followed their uphill efforts with 17th (51:12) and 24th (53:03) places respectively in the up and down event.

Flying the flag for Australian in the women’s race were Hosking (ninth, 43:42), Seibold-Crosbie (17th, 46:09) and Wichers (20th, 48:00).

Local hopes Katie Ingram and Sara Turnstall filled the top two places in the event, followed by Pamela Bundotich from Kenya.

Over 200 athletes representing federations of the Commonwealth attended the inaugural four-day meet.

Full results are available online at cumbriacommonwealthchampionships.org