McCormack to run for Europe and Celtic teams for Edinburgh XC
McCormack to run for Team Europe
Fionnuala McCormack has been selected for Team Europe at the Great Edinburgh Cross Country on January 9th as a result of her fourth place finish at the European Cross Country Championships in Hyeres, France. She has subsequently been joined by Lizzie Lee who has been added to the European team.
It is the annual international match between Britain, Europe and the USA, with a formalised European team selected by European Athletics, on the basis of their final individual results at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Hyères on Sunday 13 December.
2016 will be the 27th staging of the event which has featured some of the world’s best athletes since its inception in 1988.
There will be separate races for Senior and Junior age groups included to the programme and those will be held on the following distances:
Senior Men 8Km
Senior Women 6km
Junior Men 6km - Jack O'Leary and Kevin Mulcaire have now been selected for Team Europe.
Junior Women 4km
There will also be a 4 x 1km relay with an Irish team consisting of John Travers, Eoin Everard, Laura Crowe and Kerry O'Flaherty.
Following the results of the SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Hyères, the athletes selected for this year’s team Europe are (finalised team still to be confirmed):
MEN
Senior: Ali Kaya (TUR), Alemayehu Bezabeh (ESP), Adel Mechaal (ESP), Ayad Lamdassem (ESP), Ilias Fifa (ESP), Florian Carvalho (FRA), Roberto Alaiz (ESP), Yohan Durand (FRA), Carlos Mayo (ESP), Amanal Petros (GER), Djilali Bedrani (FRA), Lorenzo Dini (ITA).
Junior: Fabien Palcau (FRA), Jimmy Gressier (FRA), Mohamed-Amine El Bouajaji (FRA), Petro Riva (ITA), Yohane Chippinelli (ITA), Baptiste Mischler (FRA).
WOMEN
Senior: Sifan Hassan (NED), Karoline Bjerkeli Grovdal (NOR), Fionnuala McCormack (IRL), Ancuta Bobocel (ROU), Clémence Calvin (FRA), Maureen Koster (NED), Johanna Peiponen (FIN), Trihas Gebre (ESP), Louise Carton (BEL), Jip Vastenburg (NED), Amela Terzic (SRB), Viktoria Kushnir (BLR).
Junior: Konstanze Klosterhalfen (GER), Alina Reh (Germany), Célia Anton (ESP), Sarah Kistner (GER), Anne Emilie Moller (DEN), Cecile Lejeune (FRA).
In case of withdrawals, the places on Team Europe will offered to the next best athletes in each category.
Last year Team Europe finished second overall with 189 points behind the USA (121), Great Britain was third (223).
There is also a Celtic International with the following teams selected below.
Celtic International
U23 Women's Irish Team
Shona Heaslip An Riocht AC
Meghan Ryan DSD AC
Aoibhe Richardson KCH AC
Clare McCarthy DSD AC
U23 Men's Irish Team
David Scanlon Rathfarnham AC
Kevin Kelly St Coca’s AC
Karl Fitzmaurice Ennis Track AC
Rick Nally DSD AC
Junior Women's Irish Team
Emma O'Brien Inbhear Dee
Sophie Murphy DSD
Niamh Carey DSD AC
Niamh Corry Raheny Shamrock
Junior Women's Development Team
Alison Armstrong Dublin City Harriers
Lauren Dermody Castlecomer
Aisling Kelly St Johns AC
Fiona Everard Bandon AC
Junior Men's Irish Team
Pierre Murchan Dublin City Harriers
Peter Lynch KCH AC
Brian Flanagan Clonliffe Harriers AC
Cathal Doyle Clonliffe Harriers AC
Junior Men's Development Team
Paul O'Donnell DSD AC
Damian O'Boyle Craughwell AC
Evan Byrne Togher AC
Shane Hughes Mullingar Harriers AC
Girls U17's Irish Team
Amy Rose Farrell Blackrock AC (Dublin)
Claire Rafter Tullamore AC
Abigail Taylor DSD AC
Roseanne McCullough DSD AC
Boys U17's Irish Team
Darragh McElhinney Bantry AC
James Battle Mullingar Harriers AC
Louis O’Loughlin Donore Harriers AC
Donal Devane Ennis Track AC
Girls U17's Development Team
Aoife Darby Mullingar Harriers AC
Amy O’Brien Inbhear Dee AC
Annie McEvoy Kilkenny City Harriers AC
Grace Dervan DSD AC
Boys U17's Development Team
Cian Kelly St Abbans AC
Jack Moran Mullingar Harriers AC
Adam Fitzpatrick Kilkenny City Harriers AC
Damien Madigan North Cork AC