News: World Class Programme

Sammi Kinghorn is among seven Scottish Para athletes on the WCP – to the delight of Stephen Maguire (inset), Director of Performance and Coaching

Stephen thrilled as Para seven make it 20 Scots on WCP lists

Seven Scottish Para athletes have been handed support after being offered membership to the Paralympic World Class Programme (WCP) in 2020.

British Athletics have listed 46 athletes in total, with 20 of those being world medallists from the 2019 edition of the World Para Athletics Championships.

Six Scots are named on the Paralympic Podium part of the Programme with places there for Jo Butterfield, Libby Clegg (guide runner: Chris Clarke), Samantha Kinghorn, Maria Lyle, Derek Rae and Stef Reid.

And there is a place for Fife AC endurance athlete, Owen Miller, among those picked for the Paralympic Poidum Potential part of the overall support programme.

It is great news for all involved and we send out congratulations to the athletes, their families and coaches as well as the clubs who have helped them develop over many years.

cohort is now at 20 athletes – a marvellous fillip for our sport.

scottishathletics Director of Performance and Coaching, Stephen Maguire, said of the tally: ‘It’s well justified, merited and it’s a nice reflection on the summer that Scottish athletes have had in 2019 in track and field at international level in Doha and Dubai.

‘None of it’s been a surprise, and I’m very, very happy that we have 13 people who are represented on the programme.

‘Adding a further seven Para athletes is excellent, as well, and again that reflects a lot of years of hard work put in by athletes, coaches and their support teams.

‘So I firmly believe that in Scotland at the moment we can be pleased with 20 athletes deemed to merit this kind of support. What it means is that there is a belief these athletes, and their coaches, can be competitive at a very high level and that is a great compliment for them.

Scots on the Para list (with coaches, clubs): Paralympic Podium:

Jo Butterfield (Phil Peat/Shona Malcolm; Forth Valley Flyers); Libby Clegg (Joe McDonnell; Charnwood); Sammi Kinghorn (Ian Mirfin; Red Star); Maria Lyle (Jamie Bowie; Team East Lothian); Derek Rae (Ron Morrison; Fife); Stef Reid (Aston Moore; Charnwood)

Paralympic Podium Potential:

Owen Miller (Steven Doig; Fife)

Scots on the WCP list (with coaches clubs)

Olympic Podium

Callum Hawkins (Robert Hawkins; Kilbarchan); Laura Muir (Andy Young; Dundee Hawkhill); Lynsey Sharp (David Harmer; Edinburgh); Jake Wightman (Geoff Wightman; Edinburgh)

Olympic Podium Potential

Andrew Butchart (Self-coached; Central); Neil Gourley (Mark Rowland; Giffnock North); Josh Kerr (Danny Mackey; Edinburgh); Eilish McColgan (Liz Nuttall; Dundee Hawkhill); Jemma Reekie (Andy Young; Kilbarchan); Steph Twell (Selfcoached; Aldershot Farnham & District)

‘Athletics in Scotland has created a community that encourages women and girls to compete at whatever level’

Olympian and Herald columnist, Susan Egelstaff, has praised athletics in Scotland for building female participation.

A Record 433 names were received for the Senior Women’s race at the Lindsays National XC and at our 4J Studios Age Group Champs we had huge entry fields for U15 Girls and U13 Girls across almost every event.

‘As kids move into their teenage years, there is a dramatic drop in the number of girls taking part in sport, with less than half between the age of 13 and 15 participating - and this trend continues into adulthood,’ said Susan.

‘The reasons for such poor participation rates are wide and varied – from peer pressure, to not liking having to take part alongside boys, to a lack of choice of activities being just a few of the reasons why so many girls drop out of sport as they edge towards adulthood.

‘And as it stands, no one seems to know how stop this decline. However, there is some good news coming out of Scottish sport.

‘For the Lindsays National XC, there were 277 Senior Women entered in 2010 – and now that figure is 433.

‘This is a quite dramatic increase and is the result of slow but steady improvements but it is proof that if efforts are targeted in the right place, there are plenty of women out there who, given the opportunity, want to take part in sport.

‘Again, there is no definitive reason why Scottish Athletics is achieving an increase that so many other sports are struggling to replicate.

‘Much of the reason though is that while Scotland’s elite athletes are performing quite brilliantly on the world stage, athletics in Scotland is seen as a mass participation sport as much as anything these days.

‘While the National Cross-Country Championships has seen some world-class winners in recent years, including Olympian, Steph Twell, last year, the vast majority go to Callander Park in Falkirk this Saturday with no ambitions of winning a medal.

‘This is what all sports should be aspiring to.

‘There is no specific template to follow, but athletics in Scotland has managed to create a community which encourages women, and girls, to compete whatever their level.

‘That there is numerous outstanding role models, such as Twell, Laura Muir, and several more, to lead the way does no harm but I’m always sceptical abut just how helpful having role models at the very top of the sport really is to average people who want to take part in sport merely to push themselves, keep fit and have fun.

Sunday 7 June is the date and it will be a special day as the event organised by Kilmarnock Harriers celebrate their fifth anniversary.

Medals will be up for grabs for individuals and teams in the West District events in addition to the usual Roon the Toon event prizes in various categories. Details on the website. It is also the Scottish Wheelchair 10k Champs.

Entries are open online www.roonthetoon. com

There are free entries available to athletes who hit certain time standards in 2019.

Men who have run under 31 minutes in 2019

Women who have run under 34 minutes in 2019

Please register an interest at admin@roonthetoon.com

The Round the Houses 10k in Grangemouth is always a hugely popular event – taking place this year on Sunday 19 April.

And there are medals up for grabs in three different championships within the event on the day over the 10k distance.

Incorporated into Round the Houses 10k are the Scottish Student 10k Road Champs, the British Masters 10k and the East District 10K Champs.

The 10k start-time is 12.30pm that day with a 2k Family Fun Run at 12 noon.

See

www.entrycentral.com/RoundTheHouses

As PB went to print, two Scots were picked for the World Half Marathon Champs in Poland on March 29.

Steph Davis will represent GB and NI for the first time while for Sarah Inglis the road selection follows on from a couple of track appearances last summer.