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Australia's improved its chances in this weekend's World Mountain Running Championships in Wellington with the surprise late addition of a former triathlon world champion.
Australia will have two world champion women on the start line when the World Mountain Running Trophy gets underway in Wellington on Sunday. But both have been a surprise to the international mountain running scene.
Australia made a surprise announcement over the weekend, replacing injured team member Vanessa Haverd with triathlon legend Jackie
Fairweather (nee Gallagher).
Fairweather joins a strong Australian women's team led by Emma Murray, who earlier this year surprised the mountain running scene with a surprise win in the world mountain marathon championships. If
Fairweather can transfer her triathlon and marathon running talent to the rough and tumble of Wellington's Mt Victoria, Australia will have a good chance for honours in the women's team competition.
Fairweather is one of triathlon's best ever performers. In an international career that started in Wellington with the 1994 World Triathlon Championship, she won two world triathlon and two world
duathlon titles. In recent years she has returned to her teenage running roots and was a surprise bronze medallist in the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games marathon.
While a late replacement for the Australian team Fairweather has shown good recent form, wining the Australian marathon title in July. Her employment as head triathlon coach for the Australian
Institute of Sport no doubt made it easy to whip across the Tasman at late notice. While her mountain running experience is limited, Fairweather - who is married to Olympic champion archer Simon
Fairweather - is renown as a ferociously determined competitor.
In contrast to Fairweather her teammate Emma Murray is a mountain running specialist, but like Fairweather wasn't known at all on the international scene until her surprise world mountain marathon win
earlier this year. Ironically the least known contender has been drawn at random to wear race number "one" on her vest on Sunday.
Mountain running world champions Melissa Moon (NZ) and Angela Mudge (Scotland) might have something to say about that number. But with Murray and now Fairweather, the Australian team becomes the dark
horse contender for the women's team title on Sunday. With Moon and fellow Wellingtonian Kate McIlroy, New Zealand is also in with a chance. As is Scotland, with Mudge and former world mountain runner-
up Tracey Brindley leading their team.
The favourites, however, are Italy whose entire four-person team have all won individual or team medals in previous world mountain running championships.
The World Trophy event kicks off on Sunday. Competitors race over the slopes of Mt Victoria from the start/finish base in Oriental Bay. A parade through central Wellington of all competing countries
is scheduled for 12noon on Friday. Teams from 30 nations will march from Midland Park on Lambton Quay to Civic Square for an official welcome.
For further details see: www.mountainrunning.org.nz
source Athletics New Zealand |
