Road Race Grand Prix: 29 Scottish athletes will share £4000 prize-money

Tuesday 30th May 2023

Natasha Phillips of Dundee Hawkhill Harriers and Fraser Stewart of Cambuslang Harriers are the top earners in our Road Race GP for 2023 (photo by Inverness Half Marathon)

RRGP 2023 R5

The scottishathletics Road Race GP concluded with our Scottish 10K Champs earlier this month at Glasgow Green.

And what a superb five-race series it has been this year with the events over a shorter period of time helping generate interest and stimulate competition.

We’ve £4000 to distribute in prize money to athletes and the top two ‘earners’ are Natasha Phillips of Dundee Hawkhill Harriers and Fraser Stewart of Cambuslang Harriers.

Teenager Natasha, of course, won now fewer than three of the five races with superb runs at Inverness (Half Marathon Champs), Strathclyde Park (10-Mile Champs) and Glasgow Green (Scottish 10K Champs).

But there are plenty other headlines . . .

*Almost 30 athletes share the prize-money with 29 in total making A or B standards in one of more of the races

*No fewer than 21 men from 11 different Scottish clubs are in the money

*Eight women will share £2000 including Masters athlete, Sara Green, who won our Marathon Champs in London.

*While Natasha won three out of five, the competition for the Men’s was such that there were five different champions and all delivered a GP standard in doing so . . .

Fraser Stewart – Half Champs

Hamish Hickey – 10-Mile Champs

Luke Caldwell – Marathon Champs

Jamie Crowe – Scottish 5K Champs

John Bell – Scottish 10K Champs

Road Race GP – key info for 2023

Hamish Hickey of Central AC won the Scottish 10-Mile Champs – as five different men took Scottish road race titles (photo by Bobby Gavin)

Looking at the Men’s division, it is great to see the £2000 prize-money being shared by 21 athletes.

Fraser Stewart, who won the Half Marathon Champs and was silver medallist at the 10-Mile Champs, took the top spot with 12 shares and will land £292.68.

Hamish Hickey and John Bell share second place with seven shares and will each receive £170.73.

A further six athletes all landed five shares: Luke Caldwell, Charlie Sandison, Weynay Ghebresilasie, Jamie Crowe, Scott Stirling and Kane Elliott. They will all receive £121.95.

In the Women’s division, no fewer than eight athletes landed shares at some stage across one or more of the five-race GP series.

Natasha of course led the way with a stunning tally of 20 shares to land £727.27. Taking second place with 10 shares was Metro Aberdeen athlete, Ginie Barrand, who lands £363.64.

Three athletes shared third place – Lynn McKenna (Shettleston), Kirsty Walker (Edinburgh AC) and Sara Green (Gala Harriers). Each will receive £181.82.

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The Scottish 10k Champs women’s medallists – (L-R) Kirsty Walker, Natasha Phillips and Naomi Lang – all landed Road Race GP shares (photo by Bobby Gavin)

Rounding up shares allocated from final two events:

At the Scottish 10K Champs, hosted by the Shettleston Babcock race, there were excellent runs by Natasha (32:57) and Kirsty Walker (33:49). Bronze medallist, Naomi Lang, took a B standard with her 34:46 run.

Men’s champion John Bell was at 30:29 chip time to land a B standard performance.

Earlier in May, there were a number of very fine performances at the Scottish 5K Champs at Silverknowes.

The Men’s top three, Jamie Crowe (14:13), Scott Stirling (14:14) and Kane Elliott (14:18), all received A shares as they went sub 14:20.

Then, just behind those on the podium, there were B standards for no fewer than seven athletes as follows: Gavin Smith (14:28), Fraser Gilmour (14:30); Duncan Robinson (14:32); Cameron Milne (14:34); Peter Bradshaw (14:34); Alastair Hay (14:35) and Finlay Ross-Davie (14:35).

In the Women’s race that night, the top two of Lynn McKenna (16:02) and Natasha Phillips (16:12) both took A standard shares. Bronze medallist Stefanie Tucker (16:21) landed a B standard.

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WATCH OUR FINISH LINE FOOTAGE FROM SCOTTISH 5K CHAMPS AT SILVERKNOWES