29th World Mountain Running Championships
Krynica Zdrój, Poland
8 September 2013
Runners from 40 countries descended on an alpine mountain village in Poland for this year’s World Mountain Running Championships. The course included a steep ski slope hill that looked remarkably similar to steep grassy ski slopes found in Australia at Thredbo and Perisher. All of the Australians found this very tough going and Australian team leader Kate Seibold said that nearly everyone walked sections of the steep slopes.
For the first time an African country dominated the senior men’s race in the way Kenyans dominated the World Cross Country Championships in the 1980s and 1990s. The first four finishers in the Senior Men’s 13.6 km, a 3-lap course with 838 m of climb, were from Uganda; the winner, Philip Kiplimo, ran 54.22. Best of the Australians was Melbourne’s Nick Wightman who finished in the top half of the field in a meritorious 1.02.59. Sydney’s Matthew Cox was 80th in a solid 1.05.49 in his debut run at the World Championship.
An Italian, Alice Gaggi, won the Senior Women’s 9.1 km, which had 561 m of climb, in 42.47. The Australian women’s team finished 15th, with Emma Kraft of Alice Springs 59th in 52.03, Kate Seibold of Melbourne 68th in 54.03, and Jillian Hosking of Canberra 75th in 57.16.
The Junior Men’s 9.1 km saw a brilliant winning run of 38.58 by Nekagenet Crippa of Italy. Australia had two representatives in Bryce Anderson who was 43rd in 45.05 and Charlie Hunter 51st in 46.23. Both were 16, among the youngest in the field, and finished 8th and 10th respectively of those born in 1996. The experience should benefit them considerably in future years.
There were no Australians in the Junior Women’s 4.7 km which had a climb of 286 m. This was won by Mandy Ortiz of the USA in 22.56, continuing a run of success by the American team in recent years.
Full results at http://wmrc2013.pl/
Photo album (photos by Lee Hunter) at http://hardingjohn.smugmug.com/Sports/Mountain-running/2013-World-Mountain-Running/
Senior men’s 13.6 km:
1 Philip Kiplimo (Uganda) 54.22
2 Geoffrey Kusuro (Uganda) 55.19
3 Peter Kibet (Uganda) 55.19
58 Nick Wightman (Aust) 1.02.59
80 Matthew Cox (Aust) 1.05.49
Dejen Gebreselasie (Aust) DNF
Senior women’s 9.1 km:
1 Alice Gaggi (Italy) 42.47
2 Emma Clayton (Great Britain) 43.12
3 Elisa Desco (Italy) 43.32
59 Emma Kraft (Aust) 52.03
68 Kate Seibold (Aust) 54.03
75 Jillian Hosking (Aust) 57.16
Brooke Williams (Aust) DNF
Junior men’s 9.1 km:
1 Nekagenet Crippa (Italy) 38.58
2 Ramazan Karagoz (Turkey) 39.13
3 Manuel Innerhofer (Austria) 39.44
43 Bryce Anderson (Aust) 45.05
51 Charles Hunter (Aust) 46.23
Junior women’s 4.7 km:
1 Mandy Ortiz (USA) 22.56
2 Lea Einfalt (Slovenia) 23.07
3 Tubay Erdal (Turkey) 23.21