University of London athletics club; triumph at BUCS and plans for the future

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Written by Emma Dixon, Max Arzt-Jones and Eleanor Harrison of University of London Athletics Club

The University of London Athletics Club is mainly formed of athletes from smaller London university colleges because the larger colleges have teams of their own. But on Saturday 4^th February, despite being swamped in numbers by other teams, our girl’s team placed 6^th out of 59 teams across Britain in the BUCS Cross Country Championships, in Sheffield.

Read on to find out more about our BUCS experience and how you can get involved in the club.

Results at BUCS

In comparison to last year’s relatively flat course and torrential downpours, this year’s course featured hills (giving rise to stunning views) and sunshine. We arrived in high spirits on the Friday and were fuelled for the race by an Italian in the centre of picturesque Sheffield. On Saturday morning we were raring to go (except for some of the team being delayed in London due to train disruptions). Our first athlete, Alex Dudney, ran and hurdled (the hay bale) impressively in the men’s A race, despite not having raced in a cross country for almost a year! Next came the women’s race, where our team of 3 finished just one place behind St Mary’s and in front of Brunel, both extremely strong teams. Hannah Viner had a spectacular run to finish 9^th, Emma Dixon was next home in 16^th place and Eleanor Harrison secured the team in 56^th out of a field of over 600 runners.

In the last race of the day, the men’s B race, we were proud of Luke Gunter and Ben Smith who both ran solidly over the trampled course.

Looking to the future

Whilst this year has seen a rise in membership, we are aiming to grow further still by starting to get into gear for next year now. The University of London club are especially keen to work with other London universities to make both our club and other University clubs even stronger.

To achieve this, on Monday 13^th March 2017, we are hosting an evening of drinks and canapés, at the elegant East India Club in London. The current committee invite anyone involved in London athletics to come along and learn more about the University of London athletics club and athletics in London. The event will also feature talks from special guest, Lloyd Cowan MBE, and more.

Please do come along to celebrate the start of the outdoor season, network with like-minded people and support the University of London Athletics Club.

There will be an AGM at the meeting to formulate the new committee, so if you are interested in a position please contact uluathletics@gmail.com.