2023 CARDIFF CROSS CHALLENGE PREVIEW

The first fixture in this year’s British Athletics Cross Challenge series takes place at Llandaff Fields in Cardiff on Saturday 11 November at the World Athletics Cross Country Tour Gold Label Event.

World Athletics Championships finalist Jessica Warner-Judd (coach: Mick Judd, club: Blackburn Harriers), European cross country medallist Megan Keith (Ross Cairns, Inverness), and world indoor medallist Marc Scott (Richmond & Zetland) are among the British contingent in action in the Welsh capital.

With several international athletes in the senior fields, Warner-Judd will lead the British challenge as she returns to the cross country terrain after a stunning summer season on the track. Eighth in the 10,000m final at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, the Blackburn Harrier will return to the Cross Challenge series for the first time since winning in Liverpool last November.

She will face a strong challenge from Megan Keith who won silver in the U23 race at last year’s European Cross Country Championships. Also, the Scottish athlete reached her first senior track team this summer at the worlds over 5000m.

Additionally, the senior women’s race will see European U23 10,000m champion Alice Goodall (Mark Pollard, Edinburgh) in action, as well as Alexandra Millard (Bill Foster, Invicta East Kent) who won U23 bronze at the European cross last winter, and Jess Gibbon (Reading) and Jenny Nesbitt (Chris Jones, Pontypridd) who have raced in several GB & NI cross country teams in recent years.

Meanwhile in the senior men’s race, Marc Scott is set to race in his first cross country since Liverpool last year as he returns to racing after an injury interrupted 2023 season.

He will face challenge from his compatriot Zakariya Mahamed (Idris Hamud, Southampton) who enjoyed a brilliant cross country season last winter having won European cross U23 silver in Turin last December and representing GB & NI at the World Cross Country Championships in Australia.

Matt Stonier (Sonia and Chris McGeorge, Invicta East Kent) – a 3:31.30 1500m athlete on the track – returns to the cross country after competing for GB & NI at last year’s European Cross Country Championships.

There will be elite mile races taking place at the event for the first time, while there will also be a full complement of age group races with the first event setting off at 11:02am on Saturday.

The event will be streamed live on British Athletics TV HERE.

More information about the event can be found HERE.

More information of the British Athletics Cross Challenge Series can be found HERE.