September 13th, 2017

All roads led to Stirling on Sunday where the Scottish 10K Road Championship Event was being held.   The race continues to grow in terms of popularity with over 1,000 runners having entered including 25 from Cambuslang Harriers.  Pre race hopes were high that Grant Sheldon and Masters Robert Gilroy and Kerry-Liam Wilson would be in the battle for a podium place in their respective age categories and that the senior/masters men’s team would also feature among the medals. 

 
The individual and team results proved to be even better than Cambuslang could have expected as Grant won the Scottish senior title from Logan Rees of Fife AC and Lachlan Oates of Shettleston Harriers, Robert and Kerry-Liam Masters gold and silver and the team courtesy of Grant, Robert and Craig Jardine captured team gold ahead of Fife AC and Shettleston.  Although Erica Christie was the first female over 60 there was no national medal up for grabs.  This was the club’s 3rd team victory in this event along with 5 silvers and 3 bronze medals while Grant followed in the footsteps of previous club winners Stevie Wylie, Wegene Tafese and Josh Lilly.   Team victory too meant that Cambuslang had won both national trail and road championship titles in the space of 8 days and that Robert was a double Scottish Masters champion.

The Stirling course has a reputation for producing fast times and this was the case again this year in spite of wet and windy conditions.  Both Grant and Craig recorded pbs as did Kevan Harvey, Colin Reilly, Shaun Butler, Fraser Stewart and John Paul Murphy.  Cambuslang showed strength in depth by having 8 men in the top 40 with 8th placed Gordon Robertson clocking a very respectable 33.29.  Another 10 runners dipped under 39.18 in the order of Fraser, Justin Carter, Richard Carr, Michael Barker, Tony McCutcheon, Iain Nicholl, Paul Kernohan, John Paul, Simon Gold, Scott Hunter and Dan O’Connell with Kenny Finlayson just over the 40 minute mark.  Sandy Eaglesham recorded a fine 42.36 in the over 60 category.  Both Jennifer Reid and Erica Christie who won Scottish Trail Team bronze medals last week ran season best times of 41.11 and 41.54 with Lesley McArdle and Paula McCabe not too far behind them.  Millie Nicholl also ran very well to finish 2nd U13 girl in the accompanying 2K race.

GB triathlete Grant has made the most of his enforced break from triathlete training involving swimming and cycling due to a broken wrist sustained in an ITU event in Canada in early August by concentrating more on his running and earning himself 2 Scottish senior gold medals over 5K on track and 10K on road.  While he will do some running events over the winter season his main aim will be to gain triathlon selection for Scotland in next year’s  Commonwealth Games.