:00:47. > :00:52.And the good afternoon. Welcome to the first live athletics of the
:00:52. > :00:59.Olympic year. We have the perfect start this afternoon in the
:00:59. > :01:04.Scottish capital as three reigning Olympic champions go head to head.
:01:04. > :01:11.Asbel Kiprop is the Olympic champion at 1500 metres and world
:01:11. > :01:17.champion at the same distance. He will hope to beat his compatriot,
:01:17. > :01:22.rich macro, the reigning 1,000 metres steeplechase champion. --
:01:22. > :01:31.Brimin Kipruto. Both Kenyans might end up chasing the greatest of them
:01:31. > :01:41.all. He is the Olympic champion! The reigning Olympic 50101000 metre
:01:41. > :01:43.
:01:43. > :01:47.champion, Bekele. What a race that promises to be.
:01:47. > :01:52.Edinburgh Castle provides the backdrop to be Great Edinburgh
:01:52. > :01:59.International Cross Country. The Bekele race is box office. The
:01:59. > :02:03.supporting card is not too bad. And there is a team competition. The in
:02:03. > :02:13.the men's race, the European team looks to have the edge with a star-
:02:13. > :02:28.
:02:28. > :02:34.We will keep a close watch on the women's race and Stephanie Twell,
:02:34. > :02:43.and she makes her comeback after injury. Fionnuala Britton is the
:02:43. > :02:49.star turn. The team race comprises four
:02:49. > :02:54.different races. Two junior races and the men's eight kilometre race
:02:54. > :03:02.and the women's race. It is great Britain and Northern Ireland
:03:02. > :03:08.Britain and Northern Ireland against the USA and Europe. It is a
:03:08. > :03:18.beautiful day in Edinburgh. It is windy. Not as cold as it was last
:03:18. > :03:23.
:03:23. > :03:24.year. I do not think anything could have stopped Mo Farah that time. It
:03:24. > :03:32.have stopped Mo Farah that time. It have stopped Mo Farah that time. It
:03:32. > :03:35.is the men's race up first. We can hear from the leading contenders.
:03:36. > :03:43.Steve Vernon representing Great Britain. The team challenge will
:03:43. > :03:52.come into it, especially on the last lap. It is about Great Britain
:03:52. > :03:57.beating the USA or Europe. I hope we can do that. Ben Bruce, USA.
:03:57. > :04:02.Even if you are not having the best day, and knowing you cannot give in.
:04:02. > :04:08.You have to make the best of where you are in the race. It makes it
:04:08. > :04:13.exciting. If there is a sprint finish, it is exciting, but if it
:04:13. > :04:19.is for a place, it is not, but in this race it could be and that is
:04:19. > :04:28.exciting. You have to see what you can do. You have something to race
:04:28. > :04:37.for. I am the nine times European cross country champion. This is
:04:37. > :04:46.important for me. The European team. I am speaking for my team, only
:04:46. > :04:47.winning! The athletes are raring to winning! The athletes are raring to
:04:47. > :04:55.go. Time to hand over to the commentary team, Brendan Foster and
:04:55. > :05:00.first of all Steve Cram. A happy New Year to everybody. We
:05:00. > :05:07.are in Edinburgh for the Annual cross country event, which kicks
:05:07. > :05:11.the year off. This year has more relevance than most others. Sergey
:05:11. > :05:17.Lebid is a familiar figure to European cross country fans. Nine
:05:17. > :05:27.times champion. Was not able to defend his title two or three weeks
:05:27. > :05:31.
:05:31. > :05:36.ago. We have just heard from the American captain Ben Bruce. It is a
:05:36. > :05:46.reasonably strong American team. It will be tough for the British team,
:05:46. > :05:48.
:05:48. > :05:54.led by Frank Tickner, to get ahead of the Europeans and Americans.
:05:54. > :06:04.And away they go. This was held for the first time last year as a team
:06:04. > :06:07.
:06:07. > :06:15.race. We will see Bekele, Asbel Kiprop and others in the race
:06:15. > :06:22.coming up. It is a little bit soft in some parts. The course has been
:06:22. > :06:28.modified slightly to accommodate 82 kilometres at circuit. -- two
:06:28. > :06:34.kilometres. I have a feeling Brendan Foster would have relished
:06:34. > :06:43.in his heyday running on this course. Happy new year. Happy New
:06:43. > :06:53.Year to you. That is a familiar name on the best. Bekele. Atelaw
:06:53. > :07:05.
:07:05. > :07:10.Bekele, now running for Belgium. for a few years. The field, if you
:07:10. > :07:16.look at it, you have to say Bekele from Belgium is a favourite. It
:07:16. > :07:20.will be a close race. Joe Sweeney, the Irish man representing the
:07:20. > :07:28.European team today. This is a steady start. On the far side of
:07:28. > :07:30.the course it is a little bit wet, but drier on the near side. Good
:07:30. > :07:37.conditions for true cross country running. We should have a decent
:07:37. > :07:43.race. The British team is led by Frank Tickner. We heard from Steve
:07:43. > :07:48.Vernon at the beginning of the show. Also, Gerard, Hawkins. Tom
:07:48. > :07:54.Humphries, Ryan Mcleod, who had a good European Championships. James
:07:54. > :08:01.Walsh, Jonathan Taylor and James Wilkinson. Six athletes count
:08:01. > :08:07.towards the team score. We have four races in the team challenge
:08:07. > :08:15.between Great Britain, the USA and Europe. They are on the flat part
:08:15. > :08:23.of the course. Very soft underfoot. There is a short lap that of the
:08:23. > :08:29.senior men do not do, they head out on the along a lap of. But it is
:08:29. > :08:38.still a real test over there. Not as flat underfoot. There are a
:08:38. > :08:43.couple of streams to jump over. Just settling down. There is a
:08:43. > :08:50.youngster trying to keep up! He is not doing badly, signed him up!
:08:50. > :08:55.Keep going! As Brendan Foster said, this is the man everybody is
:08:55. > :09:02.looking to dominate the race, Atelaw Bekele. A slightly different
:09:02. > :09:07.test in terms of underfoot. Cross- country courses do vary. Some suit
:09:07. > :09:14.others in ways, the track specialists, they do better on a
:09:14. > :09:22.flat and faster course. Sometimes, Edinburgh can be. But this is more
:09:22. > :09:30.of a test than people think. It was fall of snow last year and hard
:09:30. > :09:37.underfoot. A very different race. former 5,000-metre champion ran
:09:37. > :09:42.last year and the year before, and I saw him today and he said what is
:09:42. > :09:48.wrong, there is no snow. He thought there was always know in Scotland.
:09:48. > :09:52.In the middle of the pack, Sergey Lebid, in the white vest. The
:09:52. > :09:58.Europeans are wearing white vests. The British team in familiar
:09:58. > :10:04.colours and the USA in a navy blue strip. The leader, Bekele from
:10:04. > :10:14.Belgium. The British athletes off to a steady start. On this side it
:10:14. > :10:24.is drier, but more rough underfoot. They will not let Bekele have all
:10:24. > :10:25.
:10:25. > :10:33.his own way. Ryan Mcleod. In that group, Jesus Espana year. -- Jesus
:10:33. > :10:42.Espana. It is a bright and sunny day in Edinburgh. But there is a
:10:43. > :10:49.cold wind. You might want to get behind big Joe Sweeney. The British
:10:49. > :10:59.men are settling. A silver medal in the European Championships. The
:10:59. > :11:00.
:11:00. > :11:04.senior men tend not to do as well as the other age groups. Many of
:11:04. > :11:09.the athletes in Slovenia are competing here today. Ryan Mcleod,
:11:09. > :11:19.Tom Humphries, Gerrard, working hard together as a group. James
:11:19. > :11:19.
:11:19. > :11:26.Wilkinson, going through the picture. I'm sorry, James Walsh. We
:11:26. > :11:34.will see what happened in the junior race shortly. Bekele,
:11:34. > :11:39.Brendan, it is a great story. You assume that people who are popping
:11:39. > :11:45.up in other countries, not their place of origin, have a running
:11:45. > :11:51.back ground. But he decided to join a local club in Belgium. He has not
:11:51. > :11:57.had much pedigree on the track so far. The run in the European
:11:57. > :12:04.Championships followed on from a good winter. He has pushed big
:12:04. > :12:11.names on the cross country circuit. He went into the Europeans in good
:12:11. > :12:16.form, perhaps the favourite. Now, everybody is looking towards him.
:12:16. > :12:23.Now we know all about him and he is the man to beat. He it is a good
:12:23. > :12:28.story. Our statistician does a good job and find the background, but it
:12:28. > :12:31.is a great story. He went along to his local club with a note in his
:12:31. > :12:37.hand because he could not speak Belgian and he said he wanted to
:12:37. > :12:43.run. The club said with a name like Bekele, coming from Ethiopia, you
:12:43. > :12:48.must be good and you are welcome to join. It is a good story. He has
:12:48. > :12:53.become a very good athlete. And in the past few days he has become
:12:53. > :12:59.professional. He has sponsorship and he has given up his jobs. He
:12:59. > :13:03.had a couple. He is running like a professional runner. He has not
:13:03. > :13:09.wasted time in getting to the front and pushing the pace. Joe Sweeney
:13:09. > :13:19.going with him. Ryan Mcleod was just moving into third place. These
:13:19. > :13:23.
:13:23. > :13:31.are the standings. 6.27. That is reasonably quick. It takes a while
:13:31. > :13:40.for the race to settle down. Europe would have started favoured.
:13:40. > :13:46.Britain, doing well in second place. The USA team is reasonably strong.
:13:46. > :13:51.The withdrawal of Bobby Curtis has we can and slightly. It could be a
:13:51. > :13:57.scrap between Europe and Great Britain. Joe Sweeney is hanging on.
:13:57. > :14:02.He is determined. Fifth place in the European cross-country
:14:02. > :14:06.champions -- championships. He has renewed confidence. I am not sure
:14:06. > :14:11.his stature will benefit over the late stages because this is a heavy
:14:11. > :14:17.course. It is heavy over that part of the course and they are sinking
:14:17. > :14:22.into the mud, as you would expect in cross country. They are coming
:14:22. > :14:30.away from the rest of the field. Skipping over the little jump. You
:14:30. > :14:40.can see the British team together, led by Steve Vernon. There is Ryan
:14:40. > :14:41.
:14:41. > :14:46.Mcleod and Frank Tickner in that about the individual race but when
:14:46. > :14:50.you are running through a team and running a score then it is up to
:14:50. > :14:55.you to keep going no matter where you are in the race. Negotiating
:14:55. > :15:03.that hurdle well for the two leaders. Joe Sweeney looks good in
:15:03. > :15:09.second place. Europe first, second and third. The Spaniard has moved
:15:09. > :15:19.into third place. The form of that race has been carried through here.
:15:19. > :15:20.
:15:20. > :15:26.Jon Grey is the leader of the Americans in 4th place. Steve
:15:26. > :15:36.Vergne and leading the rest of the Brits in 6th place. -- Steve Vernon.
:15:36. > :15:55.
:15:55. > :16:02.challenged Bekele in the closing stages of a previous race. He has
:16:02. > :16:09.now moved up to third place. Bekele is already pushing away and we are
:16:09. > :16:13.not yet at halfway point. He is in great form. It will be really
:16:13. > :16:23.interesting to see how he does on the track this summer. The Belgians
:16:23. > :16:36.
:16:36. > :16:43.must be delighted to have him. They pleased to see this particular
:16:43. > :16:49.Bekele running well in London. There is the British team coming
:16:49. > :16:56.through, Gerrard, Taylor, Tickner. And then Sergey Lebid is struggling
:16:57. > :17:01.today. He is not running so well at the moment. Later on we will see
:17:01. > :17:06.the great Bekele but we are seeing a pretty good one now. Here is the
:17:06. > :17:10.British team now. We are just approaching the halfway point macro
:17:10. > :17:16.and the strength will tell of these athletes in the second part of this
:17:16. > :17:22.race. Bekele is running comfortably but being closed down. That is an
:17:22. > :17:26.interesting move. In second place behind Bekele is Ayad Lamdassem. He
:17:26. > :17:30.finished second in the European Championships behind Bekele and
:17:30. > :17:33.here today he is looking for the opportunity of trying to change
:17:34. > :17:41.that one. It just shows you that a form from European cross-country
:17:41. > :17:44.Championships is good form. You could look at them and think they
:17:44. > :17:50.would be first and second again. There is no Mo Farah in the team
:17:50. > :17:53.this year. He is getting ready to run indoors and building up to the
:17:53. > :17:57.most exciting year of his career, the Olympic Games in London. We
:17:57. > :18:03.will talk about that more later when we talk about Kenenisa Bekele
:18:03. > :18:13.in the short dress. These two are locked in battle, the gold and
:18:13. > :18:17.
:18:17. > :18:27.silver medallists from the recent Championships, Bekele ran on home
:18:27. > :18:33.
:18:33. > :18:41.soil. It was in muddy conditions. He was beaten by Cech on that day.
:18:41. > :18:46.Well beaten, to be honest. He had some Kenyans behind him. The
:18:46. > :18:52.closest of those running behind him was Steve Vernon. He is a long way
:18:52. > :18:58.behind Bekele at the moment. Jon Grey is taking advantage of a bit
:18:58. > :19:08.of slowing because Quare and Ayad Lamdassem are closing up. -- Javier
:19:08. > :19:20.
:19:20. > :19:28.He had a brilliant run in the European Championships. There is a
:19:28. > :19:32.long way to go, just halfway. look at the American Jon Grey. He
:19:33. > :19:36.has moved towards the front. He noticed they were slowing down so
:19:36. > :19:41.he decided he would not take any part in that and accelerate to the
:19:41. > :19:47.front. You can see how much they are slowing down because Joe
:19:47. > :19:55.Sweeney who was detached from that group has closed the gap. The two
:19:55. > :20:02.European medallists in the leading group. The American Grey in there.
:20:02. > :20:12.The British contingent are all running together. At the moment,
:20:12. > :20:24.
:20:24. > :20:30.The British team are in second place. John Graham won a fairly new
:20:30. > :20:35.event, club running in the USA is not what it is here in the UK but
:20:35. > :20:45.track and field introduced the US cross-country championships and Jon
:20:45. > :21:16.
:21:16. > :21:22.have talked before about the resurgence of the American distance
:21:22. > :21:26.running scene. They do get used to a lot of team competitions. There
:21:26. > :21:31.cross-country season is fairly early. They are into the indoor
:21:31. > :21:37.season already. The big races are held around November time. They are
:21:37. > :21:41.doing well to come over here and hold good form. In the States there
:21:41. > :21:46.is a resurgence in distance running and the marathon has featured
:21:46. > :21:49.largely in bad. Next weekend they have the USA Olympic trials for the
:21:49. > :21:53.marathon and all of the distance runners will have a go about. I
:21:53. > :21:57.think some of the better-known athletes from the stakes are going
:21:57. > :22:01.to be running a marathon next week. If you run a marathon in January,
:22:01. > :22:11.if you make the team you are in the Olympics and if you do not, you
:22:11. > :22:15.still have a chance to come back and run the 5,000 or 10,000 metres.
:22:15. > :22:19.The interesting thing was I told you our statisticians finds
:22:19. > :22:24.interesting facts about these athletes and this one, Jon Grey of
:22:24. > :22:34.the USA has an identical twin brother and is an avid fly
:22:34. > :22:34.
:22:34. > :22:39.fisherman. How about that, Steve? Never mind! There was a line about
:22:39. > :22:44.fly-fishing which I will not mention. He is going very well. He
:22:44. > :22:49.is looking relaxed. He is moving over the rough ground very easily
:22:49. > :22:56.indeed. Steve Vernon has been overtaken by Frank Tickner, the
:22:56. > :23:01.team captain trying to push through the field. Trying to get the
:23:01. > :23:11.British team closer, certainly in terms of the team competition. Joe
:23:11. > :23:15.
:23:15. > :23:24.Sweeney is struggling a little bit. There is the British team. Frank
:23:24. > :23:26.Tickner, Steve Vernon, Jonathan Taylor, Tom Humphries, Keith
:23:26. > :23:34.Gerrard and Jones will consider further in the background. I think
:23:34. > :23:43.this is a good race. -- James will concern in the background. Bekele
:23:43. > :23:48.set off at a real spurt. He opened up the gap. This course will sap
:23:48. > :23:52.your energy so he backed off. Wants everybody joins you think you're
:23:52. > :23:58.not going as well as you thought. He is going through a bit of a bad
:23:58. > :24:02.patch, Bekele. Jon Grey is taking advantage of that. I am really
:24:02. > :24:07.impressed by the American. He is really running well and he is
:24:07. > :24:12.trying to win it. He has three very good athletes around him. He has
:24:12. > :24:16.athletes who are much more experienced internationally. Bekele,
:24:16. > :24:26.the way we -- the way he went for the first lap, we thought he would
:24:26. > :24:33.run away with the race but it will be competitive. Ayad Lamdassem was
:24:33. > :24:37.very disappointed to lose the European cross-country title. There
:24:37. > :24:42.are 200 metres to go. There is one lap remaining. You would not like
:24:42. > :24:47.to pick a winner out of these four. Bekele does not look as confident
:24:47. > :24:51.as he did when he was striding out at the beginning. They are getting
:24:51. > :24:56.cheered on by the crowd. One American in the leading group and
:24:56. > :25:00.three Europeans. Further down the field things are changing. The
:25:00. > :25:05.British team are still running strongly. Frank Tickner is running
:25:05. > :25:14.really well. He is about to pass Bobby Mack to move into 5th place.
:25:14. > :25:20.He is making ground on the leaders. One lap to go. Undoubtedly, the
:25:20. > :25:29.leading group will start to pick things up a little bit. Jon Brain
:25:29. > :25:39.leads from the USA and then the three Europeans led by a Ayad
:25:39. > :25:39.
:25:39. > :25:49.Lamdassem, Bekele and Javier Guerra. Frank Tickner is chasing. The
:25:49. > :26:00.
:26:00. > :26:04.British team captain is running cross-country champion but leading
:26:04. > :26:08.the British team today as their captain and also leading them in
:26:08. > :26:14.the race. He is in 5th place, five seconds down on the leading group.
:26:14. > :26:19.The leading group is splitting up now. There are three of them
:26:19. > :26:24.together. Bekele, Jon Grey and Ayad Lamdassem. The American has been
:26:24. > :26:28.pushed back into third place now. He has never experienced this level
:26:28. > :26:33.of competition before. He has never had a chance to take on the best of
:26:33. > :26:43.Britain and Europe before. He is doing it in style. He is not giving
:26:43. > :26:51.
:26:51. > :26:57.go. Atelaw Bekele was looking really confident at the beginning.
:26:57. > :27:07.Now he is back in the pole position as he pulls away from Javier Quare
:27:07. > :27:13.and now Bobby Mack has come past Frank Tickner into 6th place.
:27:13. > :27:16.saw the team standings going through. Europe have 19 points
:27:16. > :27:25.ahead of Great Britain but that could change on the last lap and
:27:25. > :27:35.certainly at the front. This races far from run. The third lap was
:27:35. > :27:36.
:27:36. > :27:38.slowest of the three. Bekele has picked it up again. If you remember
:27:38. > :27:48.the European Championships he worked hard to get away from Ayad
:27:48. > :27:50.
:27:50. > :28:00.Lamdassem. Over the loch. Bobby Mack is having a real resurgence.
:28:00. > :28:03.
:28:03. > :28:10.He has moved into 4th place. -- about 1,200 metres to go from this
:28:10. > :28:15.point. In the lead, Bekele not looking so strong. Ayad Lamdassem
:28:15. > :28:22.looking nice and relaxed. Grade doing his best to work hard with
:28:22. > :28:26.these two. -- Jon Grey. Frank Tickner still working hard. Ayad
:28:26. > :28:31.Lamdassem is the most accomplished track runner of these three. He was
:28:31. > :28:39.4th in the epic 10,000 metres that Mo Farah won in the European
:28:39. > :28:43.Championships. He is much quicker on the track than Jon Grey of the
:28:43. > :28:47.Keighley. He has positioned himself well. He has never tried to run
:28:47. > :28:57.away from the two of them. Bekele is trying to win it from a long way
:28:57. > :29:01.out. Ayad Lamdassem is just waiting. He was very disappointed to lose
:29:01. > :29:06.the European cross country championships in Slovenia. He has a
:29:06. > :29:16.chance here in Edinburgh on a blustery day with a heavy course
:29:16. > :29:19.
:29:19. > :29:25.and if it. -- a heavy course under foot. They have now got around 600
:29:25. > :29:30.metres to go. You will see the 400 metres to go signed shortly. They
:29:30. > :29:35.have a couple of switchbacks to dear. Every time Bekele gets to a
:29:35. > :29:39.corner, he gets to a section where he can still half a yard, he does
:29:39. > :29:48.so. He is very worried and so he should be. It looks as if it is
:29:48. > :29:51.between these two now. They are having to work harder. Bekele knows
:29:52. > :30:01.if he can keep Ayad Lamdassem under pressure he will have enough speed
:30:02. > :30:08.
:30:08. > :30:15.closer. They are playing cat and mouse. Now, the race within the
:30:15. > :30:20.last 400 metres. Just over 400 metres. The two of them just
:30:20. > :30:27.pushing on. They are giving Jon Grey it a chance to get back in. We
:30:27. > :30:32.do not know how good he is at the finish. Ayad Lamdessem sticking
:30:32. > :30:38.with him. It is a case of judging the course and staying close to the
:30:38. > :30:45.edge and not lose anything underfoot. And now the long run
:30:45. > :30:51.along the top. Bobby Mack is making an effort. He is just about pass
:30:51. > :30:56.Jon Grey. There are 300 yards. And if you can get on the shoulder, you
:30:56. > :31:01.never know. Bekele has a look behind and there goes Ayad
:31:01. > :31:08.Lamdessem. Bekele was slow to react. Ayad Lamdessem attack on his left
:31:08. > :31:13.shoulder. Knowing there is a tight corner. Now, it is downhill. Ayad
:31:13. > :31:17.Lamdessem is kicking hard. This will be sweet revenge for the
:31:17. > :31:23.Spaniard. Twice a silver-medallist at the European Championships. He
:31:23. > :31:28.has come to Adam there. He has avenged his defeat to Bekele the
:31:28. > :31:34.Belgian. Ayad Lamdessem waited and waited. He looked relaxed and
:31:35. > :31:41.looked superb in the home straight. Victory to Europe. Very close on
:31:41. > :31:51.the line. Just getting in there. Ahead of the long-time leader,
:31:51. > :31:52.
:31:52. > :32:00.Bekele. Steve Vernon had a battle with Javier Guerra. Britain might
:32:00. > :32:09.not have done enough. Baker lost -- Bekele lost position. Gerard goes
:32:09. > :32:19.through. Joe Sweeney. It will be close. We will sort out the team
:32:19. > :32:22.
:32:22. > :32:26.positions as we watch them cross the line. It was a great race at
:32:27. > :32:36.the end. Ayad Lamdessem did so well. He looked relaxed all the way
:32:37. > :32:39.
:32:40. > :32:45.around. A man with a good track pedigree, as Brendan Foster said.
:32:46. > :32:52.He used to speed to great effect. At this point, you think Bekele is
:32:52. > :33:00.waiting. You could sense that Bekele was trying to win it from
:33:00. > :33:07.the front. A fast downhill run. He has been waiting for this and for
:33:07. > :33:12.the revenge. Look how quickly he opened up the gap. Bobby Mack
:33:12. > :33:16.closing him down. Even more quickly to the finishing straight. Ayad
:33:16. > :33:23.Lamdessem celebrates victory. Silver-medallist from the European.
:33:23. > :33:30.He wins this ahead of the European champion. Bobby Mack out of
:33:30. > :33:34.sprinting Bekele. He tried to hold him off. Ayad Lamdessem the winner,
:33:34. > :33:41.Bobby Mack splitting the Europeans. Frantic now let the British team
:33:41. > :33:47.through to a good place. mentioned we have had junior races.
:33:47. > :33:57.It is time to look at the junior men's race. Some of the best young
:33:57. > :33:57.
:33:57. > :34:03.talent on show. They have done so well. It was a great run from Mark
:34:03. > :34:07.Shaw, who might not have expected to be at the top of the British
:34:07. > :34:14.athletes. He led from two kilometres. Until just one
:34:14. > :34:20.kilometre from home. And then the American, formerly of Ethiopia,
:34:20. > :34:27.came home with the better finish. Mark Shaw had to concede second
:34:27. > :34:37.place to his team mate. Kieren Clements. It was a brave effort
:34:37. > :34:46.
:34:46. > :34:50.from Mark Shaw. USA winning. These points, they get added up across
:34:50. > :34:55.the four races. That will decide who wins the trophy at the end of
:34:56. > :35:03.the afternoon. The junior women's race will count towards that. This
:35:03. > :35:08.was a race where we were going to have a chance to see Gorecka, who
:35:08. > :35:17.has been in wonderful form this year. Dominating the European
:35:17. > :35:25.Championships. She took her time. If Emilia Gorecka are on the right-
:35:25. > :35:29.hand side of the pack, hanging around. Perhaps she was under
:35:30. > :35:35.instructions from her coach to take it easy. And then she dominated the
:35:35. > :35:40.field. When she started moving, nobody could stay with her. The
:35:40. > :35:46.Americans tried to hang on to Gorecka. There was no chance. Once
:35:46. > :35:56.she hit the front, she kept going away. In the end, the victory was a
:35:56. > :36:00.
:36:00. > :36:05.huge victory. 20 seconds. Well done to her. Really exciting prospect.
:36:05. > :36:15.Adding the winter the European titles she won a few weeks ago. --
:36:15. > :36:23.
:36:23. > :36:24.adding victory to the European. I adding victory to the European. I
:36:24. > :36:25.adding victory to the European. I am delighted to say Gorecka is with
:36:25. > :36:31.am delighted to say Gorecka is with am delighted to say Gorecka is with
:36:31. > :36:35.Jonathan. It is never easy in cross country,
:36:35. > :36:41.but you made it look comfortable. thank you. I enjoyed it. The
:36:41. > :36:48.atmosphere was great. The crowd were amazing. It has been quite a
:36:48. > :36:54.month. I have got a lot of confidence from the European. I
:36:54. > :36:59.went out to have a solid round. What you have left for the season?
:36:59. > :37:06.I have some cross country races. I will not do indoor races. I have
:37:06. > :37:11.the nationals. Taking every race as it comes. Just turn 17. Probably
:37:11. > :37:16.not the Olympics. What has the summer hold? Possibly the world
:37:16. > :37:20.junior championships in the 3000 metres, or the 5000 metres. We will
:37:20. > :37:27.see how it goes. You must be pleased with the way this young
:37:27. > :37:32.lady is going. She is coming along nicely. She is following a good
:37:32. > :37:39.tradition of Aldershot athletes. She is training alongside Steph
:37:39. > :37:45.Twell regularly. We have some good training sessions. I guess it is a
:37:45. > :37:52.case of pace in her development. Yes. She possibly has been on a
:37:52. > :37:56.slower profile than Stephanie. Stephane moved forward rapidly.
:37:56. > :38:02.We're not holding her back, but we are only just double running with
:38:02. > :38:08.her in the past few months. It has been progressive. The mentioned
:38:08. > :38:13.Steph Twell. She broke her ankle last year. How is she doing? And to
:38:13. > :38:18.be honest, I am amazed by the recovery we have seen. We are
:38:18. > :38:23.talking about an horrific injury. People do not realise the effect it
:38:23. > :38:29.possibly had on her. It did have on her. She has grown up greatly over
:38:29. > :38:33.this injury. She hat to come to terms with a lot of things. The
:38:33. > :38:38.commitment to getting back has been huge. There have been times when we
:38:38. > :38:46.thought it would be difficult. We are starting to see the fruits of
:38:46. > :38:56.what she has put in now. what she has put in now.
:38:56. > :39:06.Bracher nations. Back to Steve Cram. Thank you. The time was not bad in
:39:06. > :39:15.these conditions. Bobby Mack might have wished he attacked earlier.
:39:15. > :39:19.Jon Grey was up with the leaders for a long time. Frank Tickner was
:39:19. > :39:29.the first of the British athletes to finish. A victory for the
:39:29. > :39:30.
:39:30. > :39:40.European team. The women's race coming up shortly.
:39:40. > :39:41.
:39:41. > :39:49.We can meet the leading contenders. The senior women's team captain. It
:39:49. > :39:54.has been an eventful year, 2011. On February 13th, I was running in a
:39:54. > :40:02.cross country race in Belgium and on a muddy course I break my ankle
:40:02. > :40:07.in three places. We have a big year that has arrived now. I want to be
:40:07. > :40:15.a part of it. Fionnuala Britton, European cross country champion.
:40:15. > :40:22.This year, winning the gold, it is a good way to go into 2012. I have
:40:22. > :40:30.not raced since the European. In a way it gives you confidence, in
:40:30. > :40:38.another it makes you nervous. You are being chased by everybody else.
:40:38. > :40:46.The captain of the team the USA. Being a part of the team is
:40:46. > :40:51.meaningful. At the moment, heading my team is an important goal. Every
:40:51. > :40:57.place counts. I guess that our races the deciding race, so it is
:40:57. > :41:06.even more important. I think we know we are out there for the same
:41:06. > :41:09.purpose, to run the very best we can. It is always a great start to
:41:09. > :41:17.my year. How I started my international competition every
:41:17. > :41:22.year for the past four years. It is the bread and butter off my cross
:41:22. > :41:27.country. I love the support here. It is a beautiful setting. I
:41:27. > :41:31.finished 2011 in the best place I could imagine. I am looking forward
:41:31. > :41:35.to taking it forward and representing Great Britain. And the
:41:35. > :41:41.competition we will have here against Europe and America, which
:41:41. > :41:48.will be exciting. I am looking forward to getting out there.
:41:48. > :41:57.I'm sure she is. Steph Twell is Scottish. I am sure the crowd would
:41:57. > :42:07.like to see her, it has been a struggle to get back to the level
:42:07. > :42:09.
:42:09. > :42:13.she has got to after that injury. Our introductions for the main
:42:13. > :42:22.contenders. The new European cross country champion, Fionnuala Britton,
:42:22. > :42:32.she had a great runner. Finally getting on to the rostrum. And we
:42:32. > :42:34.
:42:34. > :42:40.heard from the former US junior champion. Leading a very strong
:42:40. > :42:45.women's team, Steph Twell. Her training partner with victory in
:42:45. > :42:53.the junior race. I am not sure that Stephanie will be able to take the
:42:54. > :43:03.victory here. She is getting better with every race. I can give you a
:43:04. > :43:08.
:43:09. > :43:14.run down of the British team. Hannah Walker. Cash macro -- Naomi
:43:14. > :43:24.Taschimowitz. Gemma Steel, who won bronze at the Europeans. Amy
:43:24. > :43:30.
:43:30. > :43:35.Campbell, a very strong at line-up. Fionnuala Britton will be looking
:43:35. > :43:40.to repeat the victory she had. It might not be so comfortable for her
:43:40. > :43:48.today. I get the feeling it might not be the same here, she dominated
:43:48. > :43:53.that day. Athletes were inspired by her performance when she won so
:43:53. > :43:57.convincingly. I spoke to Gemma Steel, she said her tactics are to
:43:57. > :44:04.follow Fionnuala Britton all the way. She is on her shoulder. She
:44:04. > :44:07.said she would hang on to her for as long as she could. Gemma Steel
:44:07. > :44:13.on the right hand shoulder of Fionnuala Britton. Freya Murray, of
:44:13. > :44:20.Great Britain, she is out there. We have had three races. The team
:44:20. > :44:26.score, the aggregate score, USA, 107, Great Britain, 100 p 11. If
:44:26. > :44:36.the women's team beat the Americans, it looks like they could win the
:44:36. > :44:42.overall team trophy. -- 111. They are taking on the whole of Europe
:44:42. > :44:52.and the USA and it looks like they have a great chance to win that. It
:44:52. > :45:01.
:45:01. > :45:07.would be a significant performance around Steph Twell. Emma Pallant
:45:07. > :45:11.won the under 23 championships. We hoped she would be running here in
:45:12. > :45:18.Edinburgh. The Aldershot and District club which they belong to,
:45:18. > :45:22.if they had entered the European Championships as a nation, they
:45:23. > :45:29.would have been right up there on the medals table as a nation.
:45:29. > :45:34.nation of Aldershot! They have done so well. A new team has been added
:45:34. > :45:40.to the athletics family, the nation of Aldershot. I wonder when they
:45:40. > :45:43.will compete in the Olympics? Wasn't Aldershot where the British
:45:43. > :45:52.Olympic Association was going to have their holding camp at one
:45:52. > :45:56.point? Look at the British team here. You can hear the crowd from
:45:56. > :46:03.here. We are in a commentary box at the far end of the course and you
:46:03. > :46:07.can hear the crowd cheering loudly. Finola Bruton of Ireland, being the
:46:07. > :46:15.captain of the European team is literally surrounded by the British
:46:15. > :46:20.contingent -- Fionnuala Britton. The British women's team, they are
:46:20. > :46:25.running with confidence. Gemma Steel, she is running ahead of
:46:25. > :46:34.similar Britain. It looks as if they are going very steadily. Steph
:46:34. > :46:39.Twell is going comfortably. There are some athletes which have run
:46:39. > :46:47.well over the course of the last few months. Hannah Walker is there
:46:47. > :46:53.as well. This is impressive. It is great to see you. Some of them want
:46:53. > :47:00.to translate that on to the track and into good performances at the
:47:00. > :47:04.world cross which is now being held every two years. It has been a
:47:04. > :47:09.slightly circumspect start. They looked as if nobody really wanted
:47:09. > :47:15.to push on. It was as if they were waiting for Fionnuala Britton to
:47:15. > :47:19.move to the front. Gemma Steel would have been expecting her to
:47:19. > :47:24.try and dominate. A really fit Steph Twell would have got on with
:47:24. > :47:31.this right from the beginning. She cannot resist it. Her mind, no
:47:31. > :47:34.matter how fit her body is, how mind is always racing. Steph will
:47:34. > :47:41.get fitter and fitter and fitter and she will hang in there more
:47:41. > :47:46.than she has been able to so far. A week after the European cross, she
:47:46. > :47:50.was a second also behind Hartley Dean in Brussels and every race she
:47:50. > :47:55.will improved -- Hatti Dean. injury she had was a terrible
:47:55. > :48:00.injury. I have never heard of an athlete breaking their ankle in
:48:00. > :48:04.three places. It was more like a rugby injury than a running injury.
:48:04. > :48:09.That she has come back, had fantastic support, loads of
:48:09. > :48:12.physiotherapy and lots of work done. I was talking to the
:48:12. > :48:16.physiotherapist and the doctor before this race and they said
:48:16. > :48:19.before she will run today they will have her in the tent and put a hot
:48:19. > :48:25.water bottle on her foot. She will be sitting there before the start
:48:25. > :48:29.of the race. It sounds good to me. That is what she needs to do to get
:48:30. > :48:39.the flexibility back in her ankle. The she has bits of steel in have
:48:40. > :48:40.
:48:40. > :48:46.ankle. They will stay in all the way through until after the
:48:46. > :48:53.Olympics. Hopefully she will make the Olympic team. Hopefully her
:48:53. > :48:59.ankle will have healed the point where she can have that taken out.
:48:59. > :49:02.It has been a big, big comeback. I don't mean that just in terms of
:49:02. > :49:09.fitness. Psychologically, a lot of people would have struggled with
:49:09. > :49:14.all of the rehab. She has always been a student of what is available.
:49:14. > :49:22.She is happy to try anything. It does not matter what the technology
:49:22. > :49:27.is she said anything that will help me, I will have a go. The crowds
:49:27. > :49:32.will see the British team all getting ready there. Steph Twell
:49:32. > :49:35.goes alongside Gemma Steel. Gemma Steel has had a fantastic year. A
:49:35. > :49:39.bronze-medal in the European cross country championships and the
:49:39. > :49:42.confidence she gained from that to the extent that she has come from
:49:42. > :49:48.being a club runner to an international in a few years. She
:49:48. > :49:52.said she will follow Fionnuala Britton for as long as she can. She
:49:52. > :49:56.said she let her go in the European Championship but now she's getting
:49:56. > :50:03.better. She is pleased with way her running is going and she wants to
:50:03. > :50:06.be in contention. We should not discount Hatti Dean. And also Freya
:50:06. > :50:12.Murray on the inside. As they come down the finishing straight, one
:50:12. > :50:18.lap completed, two more remaining. The race is getting serious.
:50:18. > :50:27.Fionnuala Britton looks like she is coasting in that position. Two, it
:50:27. > :50:33.is completed, four more to go. -- two kilometres completed. Britain
:50:33. > :50:40.looks very comfortable. May be starting to put the foot down a
:50:40. > :50:47.little bit. Freya Murray will be having a go at the London Marathon
:50:47. > :50:50.in April. For those of you who are into your big events, one of two
:50:50. > :50:57.others you might be interested in. We have had a lot of people taking
:50:57. > :51:02.part earlier on today. On a day like this, keeping warm. Entries
:51:02. > :51:07.are open for the Great Manchester Run which should be warmer in May.
:51:07. > :51:12.You can see that on BBC2 on 20th May. And the ballot is also open
:51:13. > :51:20.for the Great North Run on 16th September. That is when our summer
:51:20. > :51:28.festivities will be almost done. I cannot wait. It is 2012, everybody.
:51:28. > :51:38.Really exciting. Fionnuala Britton running very smoothly. We have
:51:38. > :51:43.watched her for many, many years. That title she won they have waited
:51:43. > :51:47.a long time since 1994 for someone to come along. Sonia O'Sullivan was
:51:47. > :51:52.the big star of Irish athletics for so long. Now Fionnuala Britton is
:51:52. > :51:57.doing her best to fly the flag for Britain. I'm sure she will be
:51:57. > :52:01.making sure she is in the team in the summer. Although the
:52:01. > :52:06.steeplechase has been her event, she has had a good winter so she
:52:06. > :52:10.might want to consider the five and 10 as an option. Vanilla Britain
:52:10. > :52:20.was so impressive in the European cross-country championships --
:52:20. > :52:31.
:52:31. > :52:40.similar Britain. Gemma Steel is in Ireland. The local athletic club
:52:40. > :52:45.there is a fantastic club. She then went on to Dublin City University
:52:45. > :52:48.where she has done a good job. I think she is an athlete who will
:52:49. > :52:52.lead Irish distance running back to their former position. They love
:52:52. > :52:56.cross-country running in Ireland. They have had great runners on the
:52:56. > :53:02.track and in cross-country over the years. She will join that
:53:02. > :53:06.illustrious group of Sonia O'Sullivan, John Treacy. They have
:53:06. > :53:12.had a lot of fantastic runners from Ireland and this one will be
:53:12. > :53:19.another one. I think she has got to move up from the steeplechase to
:53:19. > :53:24.the 50101000 metres. I'm pretty sure her coach has got that in mind.
:53:24. > :53:29.-- the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres. Look at the gap which has
:53:29. > :53:33.opened up behind Gemma Steel to the rest of the British team. Gemma
:53:33. > :53:37.Steel is running the way she told me she would last night. She is
:53:37. > :53:45.getting good support and is very appreciative of that. She has come
:53:45. > :53:55.of age and the last few weeks. For New Britain was the champion in the
:53:55. > :54:00.
:54:00. > :54:04.European cross-country yet. A big gap to Steph Twell who
:54:04. > :54:09.is trying to find some better ground on the left-hand side. It is
:54:09. > :54:16.getting very muddy and soft. You can see a lot of athletes switching
:54:16. > :54:21.across. I thinks death will be wanting to obviously finish as high
:54:21. > :54:24.as she can that she is almost marking of the athlete's she is
:54:25. > :54:33.getting ahead of. In the last race she was not too far behind Hatti
:54:33. > :54:40.Dean. She will be trying to make sure she finishes ahead of the
:54:40. > :54:45.other British athletes. There is a big gap between the two leaders and
:54:45. > :54:52.the chasing group. It is surprising that gap. There are some good
:54:52. > :55:00.athletes in the chasing group. Steph Twell, Freya Murray, Spence
:55:00. > :55:10.of the USA. Similar Britain began to fly down the back part of the
:55:10. > :55:30.
:55:30. > :55:37.when you are running like this, it is best to get alongside soap they
:55:37. > :55:43.know you are there and they know they have not run the race yet.
:55:43. > :55:47.Gemma Steel is doing a terrific job here. She has got stamina. She ran
:55:47. > :55:55.the Birmingham half-marathon last autumn and she was impressive in
:55:55. > :56:05.that. The sign will say 400 metres to go with one lap. We might see a
:56:05. > :56:09.sprint finish. Gemma is staying with the task. She is but I think
:56:09. > :56:15.it is particularly on this section where similar Britain has got that
:56:15. > :56:23.lovely cross country action. Not too much money left there. She gets
:56:23. > :56:30.up the hill quickly, little steps, driving with the arms. None of the
:56:30. > :56:40.obstacles last learning head-down. -- none of the obstacles are
:56:40. > :56:46.slowing her down. There is a little stream there with bales of hay to
:56:46. > :56:50.protect them from some rocks. There is a little waterfall. On a nice
:56:50. > :56:57.today you might sit and enjoy a picnic with a view of Arthur's Seat.
:56:57. > :57:07.Not today. Not for the faint- hearted, cross country in January.
:57:07. > :57:10.Coming to the end of the second lap. It is not a big lead. Gemma Steel
:57:10. > :57:16.is trying to stay in contact with the Irish European cross-country
:57:16. > :57:20.champion. The team race at the moment is going great Britain's way.
:57:20. > :57:27.That means over all they will finish ahead of the USA because the
:57:27. > :57:32.USA are struggling in the senior women's the event. There were four
:57:32. > :57:38.points between GB and the USA heading into this race. Who will
:57:38. > :57:48.come out on top here? The Mela Britain is working hard. She looks
:57:48. > :58:02.
:58:02. > :58:12.the American team captain is contesting. -- Spence. Steph Twell
:58:12. > :58:14.
:58:14. > :58:19.is looking a little tired at the moment. Look at the concentration.
:58:19. > :58:24.On this last lap, she has started to stretch away. She is pulling
:58:24. > :58:28.yards ahead of Gemma Steel. The European cross-country champion
:58:28. > :58:33.running with the confident that that title gave have. She has run
:58:33. > :58:36.well on the contrary before and in the European cross-country. The
:58:36. > :58:41.attention she has received in Ireland since she won that one, she
:58:41. > :58:45.has been staggered and delighted. They all know she is running today.
:58:45. > :58:50.She is taking on the best of Europe again, taking on the rest of
:58:50. > :58:55.Britain again and for the first time, taking on the rest of the USA
:58:55. > :59:05.-- the best of the USA. She is really beginning to run well. Gemma
:59:05. > :59:08.
:59:08. > :59:12.Steel is going through a bit of a bad patch. Climbing up the little
:59:12. > :59:16.incline, and relaxing on the top. Running with the confidence you
:59:16. > :59:26.gain from your first major title. If this young lady will be a force
:59:26. > :59:42.
:59:42. > :59:46.powerfully and strongly. She not be bothered by the conditions here.
:59:46. > :59:50.Catherina McKiernan was the European cross country champion,
:59:50. > :59:55.Fionnuala Britton has joined her. If you mention her in the same
:59:55. > :00:03.sentence, she gets pleased and excited. She is getting better all
:00:03. > :00:13.the time. Confirmation of the standings. Great Britain have a big
:00:13. > :00:14.
:00:14. > :00:19.lead over Europe and the USA. It will mean the Great Britain
:00:19. > :00:23.contingent will finish on top. At the moment, this is a real
:00:23. > :00:28.demonstration, an excellent demonstration of cross country
:00:28. > :00:37.running by Fionnuala Britton. There is no let up. The second lap and
:00:37. > :00:42.was almost 19 seconds quicker than the first lap. She is going away
:00:42. > :00:49.from Gemma Steel and the rest of the field. They are a long way
:00:49. > :00:54.behind in the battle for third. This is really impressive. One
:00:54. > :00:58.kilometre her remains for Fionnuala Britton. You almost sense she is in
:00:58. > :01:04.a place where she can enjoy that. Gemma Steel in second place for
:01:04. > :01:13.Great Britain. Sticking to her task. Another solid performance by Gemma
:01:13. > :01:18.Steel. She will try to run the 5000 metres, possibly the 10,000 metres,
:01:18. > :01:22.on the track. With the intention possibly of moving up to the
:01:22. > :01:29.marathon. She will be aiming for the Olympic Games in the 5000
:01:29. > :01:32.metres, the 10,000 metres. As his Fionnuala Britton. You say she is
:01:33. > :01:39.enjoying this purple patch in her career. We are seeing her run
:01:39. > :01:44.better than we have before. She is competitive at a world level. This
:01:44. > :01:49.is a fantastic place to be in. If you look at the records, and you
:01:49. > :01:55.see that athletes who run well in cross country, they often do well
:01:55. > :02:01.in the Olympic Games in that same year. Can she make the move to 5000
:02:01. > :02:06.metres, 10,000 metres? Can she feature in London in the summer?
:02:06. > :02:14.Gemma Steel is running strongly in second place. This is an impressive
:02:14. > :02:19.performance by Fionnuala Britton. No question about the winner. 600
:02:19. > :02:25.metres to go. Gemma Steel, no question about her second place
:02:25. > :02:32.because there is a long way to third. Elle Baker is contesting
:02:32. > :02:42.third place with Neely Spence, the American team captain. Baker, a
:02:42. > :02:42.
:02:42. > :02:49.good run from have. -- from her. There is a good chance of her
:02:49. > :02:54.getting into the top three. She will have to hold off the American.
:02:54. > :03:00.As we watch Fionnuala Britton. When you see some athletes running up
:03:00. > :03:06.this hill, there is no change in her action. It is an effort, of
:03:06. > :03:11.course it is, but the pace does not change. Pushing on. It does not
:03:11. > :03:16.matter whether it is mud, whether it is a hill, really good cross-
:03:16. > :03:22.country running. She works and trained hard. She has applied
:03:22. > :03:27.herself over the years. This is a very good performance. Second place
:03:27. > :03:37.for Gemma Steel. Fionnuala Britton relaxing down a hill. Suggesting
:03:37. > :03:37.
:03:37. > :03:42.she will move from the steeplechase to the 5000 metres or 10,000 metres.
:03:42. > :03:47.That would set her up nicely for the Olympic Games. We are looking
:03:47. > :03:55.at a very good athlete. We are looking forward to seeing her on
:03:55. > :04:00.the BBC at the European track championships. Maybe she will be
:04:00. > :04:04.prompted to look at these performances she has put in in the
:04:04. > :04:09.winter and really attack the long distances on the track. For now,
:04:09. > :04:19.she will revel in another superb demonstration of cross country
:04:19. > :04:26.running. Fionnuala Britton, completely dominant in Edinburgh.
:04:26. > :04:31.Superb running from the European champion. She wins almost at a
:04:31. > :04:37.canter. She looks around. She sees the damage she has done. Gemma
:04:37. > :04:41.Steel did her best to stay with her, and she said she would, but she had
:04:41. > :04:50.to give it into the superior strength of Fionnuala Britton.
:04:50. > :04:55.Second place for Gemma Steel. Almost to say, I did my best. She
:04:55. > :04:59.certainly did. It was a good run from have. A long way ahead of Elle
:04:59. > :05:06.Baker, who has done well to get ahead of the American team captain,
:05:06. > :05:12.Spence. Friar Murray is next to cross the line, in 5th for Great
:05:12. > :05:22.Britain. They will undoubtedly win the team race. Hatti Dean was the
:05:22. > :05:26.next in. Finished strongly. Hannah Walker of them coming in. Stephanie
:05:26. > :05:33.Twell faded, but she will get better with more training and more
:05:33. > :05:41.competition. She is talking about maybe running indoors, as well. She
:05:41. > :05:48.will only improve as the yet advances. -- as the Year advances.
:05:48. > :05:53.It was a it really dominant victory. The man who won the European title
:05:53. > :05:58.could not come here and give the same performance, but for Fionnuala
:05:58. > :06:03.Britton, it is a case of as you were. If anything, she was running
:06:03. > :06:08.even better today. I think she was running so impressively, on the far
:06:08. > :06:12.side of the course, where she could relax and stretch out.
:06:13. > :06:19.Concentration all the time. Wearing out Gemma Steel in second place.
:06:19. > :06:27.That is the best performance from Gemma Steel we have seen, but the
:06:27. > :06:28.European champion wins it well. She is talking to Jonathan Edwards.
:06:28. > :06:32.is talking to Jonathan Edwards. is talking to Jonathan Edwards.
:06:32. > :06:37.is talking to Jonathan Edwards. is talking to Jonathan Edwards.
:06:37. > :06:43.Gemma Steel, as well. That was stunning. You looked
:06:43. > :06:47.brilliant. Over the last day and a half I felt the pressure. You have
:06:47. > :06:52.the Europeans, Christmas, and then you have to race again. You come
:06:52. > :07:00.over here and it is a big event. I knew everybody would chase and I
:07:00. > :07:05.had to have a strong race. From the Europeans, you came here and win
:07:05. > :07:09.impressively. How good a shape are you in? It is hard to tell. You do
:07:09. > :07:14.the training. You do it between everything else. With the weather
:07:14. > :07:20.being the way it is, so windy, you cannot measure anything. It is nice
:07:20. > :07:24.to come out and feel strong and run like that. The success in Edinburgh,
:07:24. > :07:31.the likes of Mo Farah, they have gone on to have good seasons. What
:07:31. > :07:37.about you? I would be very happy. I have to look to the track and the
:07:37. > :07:44.Olympics. Maybe in the 5000, and the 10,000. Knew how qualification
:07:44. > :07:50.for the steeplechase. I have been told that I need to be a bar of my
:07:50. > :07:54.distance. I have accepted the fact I have to. -- above my distance.
:07:54. > :07:58.Gemma Steel, you try to stay with Fionnuala Britton, but a great
:07:58. > :08:05.performance. It was tough out there in the wind. I stuck to my task.
:08:05. > :08:09.Fionnuala Britton was good today. And a great performance at the
:08:09. > :08:15.European cross-country, bronze medal. I tried different tactics
:08:15. > :08:22.today to stick with Fionnuala Britton for as long as I could. I
:08:22. > :08:27.did as well as I could have done. She is in phenomenal shape.
:08:27. > :08:32.Congratulations to both of you. Congratulations to both of you.
:08:32. > :08:38.Back to Steve Cram. No doubt about our winner. A good,
:08:38. > :08:45.strong performance from Fionnuala Britton, she won by 20 seconds from
:08:45. > :08:53.Gemma Steel. And she was a long way ahead of Elle Baker. Neely Spence,
:08:53. > :08:57.the American team captain, taking 4th. With those British names on
:08:57. > :09:03.that list, undoubtedly, Great Britain winning the team race. They
:09:03. > :09:08.will win the trophy over all with 33 points.
:09:08. > :09:18.One race today. It is the feature race. We have three reigning
:09:18. > :09:18.
:09:18. > :09:26.Olympic champions in the men's race. We can hear from them.
:09:26. > :09:33.I am Asbel Kiprop, I come from Kenya. It excites me a lot. We came
:09:33. > :09:35.here last year and around with my colleagues. I finish second and
:09:36. > :09:45.went on to win the World Championships. It is great
:09:45. > :09:55.preparation. They are great athletes. Every athlete would want
:09:55. > :10:00.
:10:00. > :10:10.the Olympics. I will be racing in a high-class field. I am a gold-
:10:10. > :10:13.
:10:13. > :10:23.medallist from Kenya. It will be great to see with the Olympic
:10:23. > :10:25.
:10:25. > :10:35.champions, tomorrow. The Olympic champion. From Ethiopia. It is
:10:35. > :10:36.
:10:36. > :10:46.special to me, because I won in cross country in 2008 at Edinburgh.
:10:46. > :10:57.
:10:57. > :11:05.I like to run here. It is a great place. He can run at 3000, and
:11:05. > :11:15.steeplechase, maybe he will have the advantage. This is my fastest
:11:15. > :11:17.
:11:17. > :11:23.race this season. I will do my best. For me, I will do my best.
:11:23. > :11:29.Three great champions. And a mouth- watering race in prospect. All of
:11:29. > :11:34.them out of their comfort zone slightly. Taking on some of the
:11:34. > :11:41.best British talent. Some for million names. Anthony Whiteman
:11:41. > :11:48.jumping up and down in the middle. Ricky Stevenson did well before.
:11:48. > :11:53.Lining up against the is almost legends. Eliud Kipchoge, the world
:11:53. > :11:57.champion, 2003, when he was just a youngster. He has been a great
:11:58. > :12:05.friend of this event in Edinburgh. He likes to compete here and it is
:12:05. > :12:13.good to see him back. What a season it was for Brimin Kipruto. He just
:12:13. > :12:20.missed the world record in Monaco. Looking for a good start to 2012.
:12:20. > :12:30.Asbel Kiprop, undoubtedly the best 1500 metres runner in the world.
:12:30. > :12:31.
:12:31. > :12:37.His gold medal was finally given to him in December. And a huge cheers
:12:37. > :12:41.for Kenenisa Bekele. It is great to see him back. The race in Brussels
:12:41. > :12:47.I mention this afternoon, that showed that anyone who thought that
:12:47. > :12:53.he was not going to be a factor in 2012 has to think again. Three
:12:53. > :12:58.kilometres. One short lap and then one big lap. Will they go hard from
:12:59. > :13:05.the start? Will there be some cat and mouse? This is a chance for
:13:05. > :13:15.British runners to rub shoulders with these great names. Some of the
:13:15. > :13:17.
:13:17. > :13:27.best European athletes are here. Arturo Casado is in this race, as
:13:27. > :13:36.well. Eliud Kipchoge in the black vest alongside him. Arturo Casado
:13:37. > :13:41.1500 metres champion. Asbel Kiprop, the world and 1500 metre champion.
:13:41. > :13:49.They have gone flying off. The talent has emerged immediately at
:13:49. > :13:54.the front. Bekele just behind the group, working his way through in
:13:54. > :14:00.fifth or sixth place. Ricky Stevenson, who won two years ago
:14:00. > :14:05.here has put himself in a good place. Whenever Eliud Kipchoge is
:14:05. > :14:11.in good shape, he goes to the front as soon as he can and there he goes.
:14:11. > :14:19.Stretching it out already. mentioned Anthony Whiteman. He
:14:19. > :14:24.started off fairly slowly. 39 years of age. I saw him a month ago in a
:14:24. > :14:30.cross country relay. He outsprinted, he was in the first leg, and he had
:14:30. > :14:35.a kick like he was 21 years of age. The crowd cheered as he got his
:14:35. > :14:43.long legs moving. He said, I cannot believe I have just done that, I
:14:43. > :14:53.was out celebrating Kelly Holmes' birthday last night! He has
:14:53. > :14:58.
:14:58. > :15:05.ambitions for the record for over Kipchoge stretching well. Ricky
:15:05. > :15:12.Stevenson running well behind him. Kipchoge, whenever he runs, the
:15:12. > :15:19.inevitable result is that he comes first. When he does not win, the
:15:19. > :15:25.inquiry starts, is the past his best? He shocked us all last year.
:15:25. > :15:30.He dropped out of the 10,000 metres and then he lined up in Brussels.
:15:30. > :15:37.He ran the fastest 10,000 metres in the world last year and he is back
:15:37. > :15:41.in action. Young Ross Millington is ignoring those facts and figures
:15:42. > :15:51.and everything else and the bigger names around him. He is based at
:15:51. > :15:56.the University of New Mexico, the European silver medallist. He is
:15:56. > :16:02.from Stockport Harriers. He is not frightened of nicknames behind him.
:16:02. > :16:08.They complete the first kilometre. Kiprop is tall, a lovely looking
:16:08. > :16:14.runner. Kenenisa Bekele, a good 15 metres adrift of these leaders.
:16:14. > :16:20.There is only two kilometres to go. You might want to see him a bit
:16:20. > :16:25.closer than that. It is a bit further back than you might have
:16:25. > :16:29.expected if he is going to win this. It is not where he would want to be.
:16:29. > :16:32.Be said he has been training well. He said he has not got the speed
:16:32. > :16:38.that expects to have later in the year that he fully expects to run
:16:38. > :16:45.well. Kenenisa Bekele is behind Kipruto. He will certainly have to
:16:45. > :16:49.get a move on now. Ross Millington is stretching them out. The tall
:16:49. > :16:54.figure of Asbel Kiprop, who recently received his gold medal,
:16:54. > :16:57.finished second in the Olympic Games when the winner was
:16:57. > :17:02.disqualified for drug-taking. That was a real shame for him that he
:17:02. > :17:07.could not collect his gold medal in Beijing. He waited four years to
:17:07. > :17:11.collect his gold medal in December. He was a world junior cross-country
:17:11. > :17:16.champion as was Eliud Kipchoge. If you look at the pedigree of these
:17:16. > :17:20.athletes, apart from them being recent stars on the track, they can
:17:20. > :17:25.run in the country as well. Kenenisa Bekele is in trouble now.
:17:25. > :17:30.He has given them far too much of a start. His fitness levels are not
:17:30. > :17:35.what he told us they were. He will not win this race from there now.
:17:35. > :17:43.Somebody has got to do something about Ross Millington. Kiprop is
:17:43. > :17:48.trying to go with him. Juan Carlos Higuero is running well. Mark
:17:48. > :17:53.Mitchell must be thinking, what is going on here, I have just run past
:17:53. > :17:58.Kenenisa Bekele in a cross-country race? He is either struggling with
:17:58. > :18:03.the conditions of fitness, I am not sure which. Millington has got a
:18:03. > :18:09.good five-metre lead ahead of Kiprop, Ben Juan Carlos Higuero.
:18:09. > :18:19.Johnny Heikki is also going well with Callum Hawkins behind him --
:18:19. > :18:28.
:18:28. > :18:33.wearing his best. He is based in the US now. Kiprop, the 1,500 metre
:18:34. > :18:37.world champion. He is not bad in longer events. I have seen him run
:18:37. > :18:42.a couple of cross-country and road races. It is good to see him doing
:18:42. > :18:46.best. Good 1,500 metre runners should be prepared to come out in
:18:46. > :18:50.January and do this sort of event. I'm sure you would have relished
:18:50. > :18:56.this sort of event in your time as well as Steve Ovett and Sebastian
:18:56. > :19:00.Coe. The double Olympic champion is not in form and is not running well
:19:00. > :19:05.through the mud. He is behind the steeplechase champion Kipruto.
:19:05. > :19:13.There are surprises although the this race. It is surprising to see
:19:13. > :19:18.him back there. Kiprop, the 1,500 metre Olympic champion. He is
:19:18. > :19:22.striding out. He was world junior cross-country champion in the past
:19:22. > :19:27.and he now looks to be very comfortable on the course. I bet he
:19:27. > :19:34.is surprised at how far ahead of this field he has already. The tall,
:19:34. > :19:39.rangy figure of Asbel Kiprop, an athlete who we will certainly see
:19:39. > :19:47.feature in London. Whatever happens, you can guess he will be there.
:19:47. > :19:53.Ricky Stevens -- Ricky Stevenson is also running well. The two Olympic
:19:53. > :19:58.champions Kipruto and Bekele are struggling. He looks leisurely but
:19:58. > :20:04.his legs are so long and his pace is so powerful that he is edging
:20:04. > :20:08.away all the time. He has this languid style which is sometimes
:20:08. > :20:12.deceptive to people. He can really turn on the pace. The only thing
:20:12. > :20:19.all of us get frustrated with Kiprop on the track is sometimes he
:20:19. > :20:24.does not concentrate. Today he has done that pretty well. He could not
:20:24. > :20:29.be blamed for losing concentration in a cold cross country event in
:20:29. > :20:32.January. I'm not sure what is wrong with Kipruto or Bekele but I would
:20:32. > :20:37.have thought they would be much more competitive than those. There
:20:37. > :20:43.are some young British athletes between them who will be absolutely
:20:43. > :20:47.thrilled with how they are going. Journey Hague is in the black fest
:20:47. > :20:53.alongside Ed Millington who is struggling a little bit. Ricky
:20:53. > :20:58.Stevenson ran well last year. They will be able to say that they
:20:58. > :21:04.finished ahead of the Keighley. No doubt about the winner, he looks so
:21:04. > :21:09.comfortable. Asbel Kiprop, the 1,500 metre champion climbing this
:21:09. > :21:19.hill as if it does not exist. If he looks over his shoulder he will see
:21:19. > :21:19.
:21:19. > :21:28.his team mate, Eliud chip -- ended Kipchoge. -- Eliud Kipchoge. He is
:21:28. > :21:32.moving so well. You will be seeing him, the star of the show in London
:21:32. > :21:38.at the 1,500 metres. We look forward to seeing him there and
:21:38. > :21:43.seeing him finish this race. 200 metres to go. He can just relax. He
:21:43. > :21:51.has won this race by a mile! And he has not looked like he has been
:21:52. > :21:58.stretched too much at all. The long legs stretching away and the World
:21:58. > :22:03.1,500 metre champion winning in fine style here in Edinburgh. A
:22:03. > :22:11.great start to the year for Asbel Kiprop. We look forward to watching
:22:11. > :22:17.him in London in August. He wins. Johnny Hay coming through to take
:22:17. > :22:23.second place. Ricky Stevenson next to cross the line. Ross Millington,
:22:23. > :22:29.a brave effort from him. Callum Hawkins, a local lad. His brother,
:22:29. > :22:35.Derek, ran early on. Then they start streaming across the line.
:22:35. > :22:43.Bekele just out kicks Kipruto. The two Olympic champions not running
:22:43. > :22:51.too well. But this one certainly did. This is our winner. What about
:22:51. > :22:53.Johnny hates? A great second place for him. He had a great -- he had a
:22:53. > :22:59.disappointing European Championships. He made up for it
:22:59. > :23:04.today. I'm not sure what to think. You would have thought Bekele, he
:23:04. > :23:11.is back, he is fit, theoretically it. He has been in Edinburgh before.
:23:11. > :23:17.He has run on the mat and the snow. He has won this race many times
:23:17. > :23:22.before. He said 3,000 metres was short but if it had been 10,000
:23:22. > :23:27.metres he would never have caught them. Kiprop, the massive stride of
:23:27. > :23:32.the world and Olympic champion. An athlete who will get better over
:23:32. > :23:37.time. An athlete who will be a major force when it comes to London
:23:37. > :23:44.in the 1,500 metres in the Olympic Games in a few months' time. He is
:23:44. > :23:51.starting 2012 in great shape, finishing like a champion. That is
:23:51. > :23:57.a breakthrough race for Jenny Hey. A fantastic performance. We are
:23:57. > :24:05.waiting a little while for the double Olympic champion, there he
:24:05. > :24:10.comes, Kenenisa Bekele. He has got some work to do, that is for sure.
:24:10. > :24:14.It may have been a day for some to take a nice stroll out and feed the
:24:14. > :24:23.swans but all of the cross country winners -- runners, it was tough
:24:23. > :24:29.out there. In the end, it was a fairly comfortable victory once we
:24:29. > :24:33.had it all the four races together. Team USA were struggling in the
:24:33. > :24:43.last race. They had let up until that point. Team Europe struggled
:24:43. > :24:45.
:24:45. > :24:52.in the juniors which is why they How pleased where you with that
:24:52. > :24:58.run? IAA was excited. I'm excited having won here today. I was second
:24:58. > :25:01.last year. I came here wanting to prove a point. You had Kenenisa
:25:01. > :25:06.Bekele in the race and Brimin Kipruto, were you expecting a
:25:06. > :25:13.greater challenge from them? expected a tougher challenge from
:25:13. > :25:18.them. I was surprised. The other guys were also very tough. What is
:25:18. > :25:22.next for you now? I am preparing for the Olympic Games in London.
:25:22. > :25:27.look forward to seeing you defend your Olympic title. Many
:25:27. > :25:30.congratulations. Thank you very much. That rounds up the live
:25:30. > :25:40.action for this afternoon. But there is plenty more coming up on
:25:40. > :25:40.
:25:40. > :26:22.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 41 seconds
:26:22. > :26:30.So we are back on the air with more athletics on Saturday 28th of
:26:30. > :26:40.January. We will see Mo Farah and Hannah England.
:26:40. > :26:52.
:26:52. > :26:55.the commentary box. A big shock? big shock but a great performance
:26:55. > :26:59.by Asbel Kiprop. He was the world junior champion and he has
:26:59. > :27:05.obviously got better on the track. 1,500 metre world champion and
:27:05. > :27:07.Olympic champion. He was surprised that Kenenisa Bekele did not
:27:07. > :27:11.challenge are more. We were surprised that Kenenisa Bekele did
:27:11. > :27:16.not challenge him off. He wanted to come, he wanted to compete, he was
:27:16. > :27:20.happy when he saw the line-up. An athlete who is not here today, Mo
:27:20. > :27:24.Farah, who is watching the racing Kenya will be delighted. Kenenisa
:27:24. > :27:28.Bekele is in a position where you do not want to be. At the start of
:27:28. > :27:33.the Olympic year you do not want to be thinking, my goodness, will it
:27:33. > :27:37.all come back? We have not seen him run for two years competitively,
:27:37. > :27:42.apart from one good race. I would rather be where Asbel Kiprop is
:27:42. > :27:47.then Kenenisa Bekele. Absolutely. Thank you. The 2012 athletics
:27:47. > :27:50.season is up and running and it started with a big shock in the