Firsttime entrants take 3 of 4 titles
THREE of four New Zealand Mountain Running titles were handed out to debut entrants in Queenstown on Saturday.
In the event, organised by Athletics New Zealand in conjunction with Queenstown Athletics and Active QT, 72 runners from across the country took on the scenic, and formidable, Deer Park Heights course.
The masters men, senior men and senior women were presented with an 8.6km, predominantly uphill, run, while the masters women and under20 men and women faced a 5.8km course.
Christchurch Avon’s Cameron Avery blitzed the field in the senior men’s race, finishing 50 seconds ahead of Pakuranga’s Toby Batchelor, in a time of 36min 10sec, with Tim Robertson (Hutt Valley Harriers) in third.
It was Avery’s mountain running debut, and his maiden senior title.
Believing the uphill nature of the course would suit his style, he thought he could be ‘‘in with a shot to win it’’, Avery said.
The first few kilometres were the ‘‘toughest of the race’’, but he got into a nice rhythm up the smooth incline and, as the course was not too technical, that worked in his favour, he said.
Queenstown’s Sarah Douglas defied a recent bout of Covid to claim a hometown win, and secure her third national senior women’s mountain running title, beating Maeve Kennedy (Queensberry) by almost two minutes and finishing in 47min 06sec.
Sumner’s was third.
Douglas (38), a graphic designer, said the 5km7km mark was hard, ‘‘but I did enjoy the last kilometre’’.
‘‘It is such an epic course and that final kilometre is breathtaking.’’
Also making her mountain running debut, 14yearold Siena Mackley (Remarkable Runners/ Queenstown Athletics) claimed a
Jessica Campbell surprising victory in the under20 women’s race.
The Wakatipu High pupil only entered the race because she was coached by coorganiser Neville Britton and described winning as ‘‘a bit of a shock’’.
Using her local knowledge, she knew she had to stay steady given it was ‘‘tough towards the top’’.
‘‘I just tried to pace it to make sure I didn’t burn myself too early.
‘‘I broke away around halfway, but I knew Sophie [Robb, Auckland] was not too far behind me, so I could never ease off.’’
Siena won in 31min 16sec, 54 seconds ahead of Robb. Kennedy Taylor (St Paul’s, Invercargill) was third.
Auckland City Athletics’ Ben
Rickerby also had a golden debut in the under20 men’s race, having been inspired to enter after watching a training partner compete last year.
‘‘I went out with the seniors and didn’t realise no juniors were with me until the seniors turned off at the junction,’’ Rickerby said.
‘‘Before the turnaround I had been quite relaxed, but that last kilometreandahalf up the hill was a little bit harder.’’
The University of Auckland student won in 26min 50sec, 25 seconds ahead of James McLeay (St Paul’s, Invercargill), and Janek Manderson (Wanaka) was third.