Scots aim high in Thailand at World Mountain and Trail Champs

Wednesday 2nd November 2022

Picked for Thailand! Ten Scots selected for World Champs

Scottish athletes are preparing for the inaugural World Mountain and Trail Running Championships this weekend in Chiang Mai, Thailand (3-6 November)

The mountain running championships were last held in Asia in 1999 in Borneo.

This time, the GB and NI includes a really strong cohort of 11 Scottish athletes in each of the disciplines and there is also representation on the British staff team.

The championship was scheduled for November 2021 but was postponed for a year due to Covid. Thankfully, most of the Scottish athletes who were selected in 2021 ran well enough in their respective trials to gain selection for the rescheduled event.

Runners will face testing conditions on the mountain, where the average temperature is 28 degrees and humidity 85 percent. The courses are all based on the mountain behind Chiang Mai which is within a few km of the team accommodation.

The championship is now a World Athletics fixture and prize money is being offered for the first time. Competition will be fierce with over 35 countries entered in the competition with representation from all manner of countries from Iceland to Cambodia.

Naomi lands GB call-up

Scottish athletes dominated the British up and down mountain running trials where three Scots have been selected in both the male and female events.

Siblings Scout Adkin (Moorfoot) and Jacob Adkin (Keswick) go to Thailand in good form. They finished second and seventh respectively in the final World Cup event in Italy.

The championship includes a long (78km, 4800m) and short (38km, 2425m) trail race on Saturday 5 November. The mountain running events: Uphill only (8.5km, 1065m) on Friday and the Senior (10.7km, 475m) and junior (U20) up and down races (6km, 230m) on Sunday 6 November.

Scottish athletes in Thailand:

Jacob Adkin (Keswick) – uphill only

Scout Adkin (Moorfoot) – uphill only and up and down

Alexander Chepelin (Carnethy) – up and down

Meryl Cooper (Deeside) – long trail

Andy Douglas (Inverclyde) – up and down

Fraser Gilmour (Kilbarchan) – junior up and down

Ross Gollan (Shettleston) – up and down

Catriona Graves (Highland Hill Runners) – short trail

Naomi Lang (Carnethy) – up and down

Holly Page (Carnethy) – uphill only and up and down

Ryan Smith – long trail

*And Scotland-based Kris Jones (Dundee Hawkhill Harriers) – short trail

For Naomi, Ross and Alexander this will be their first Senior international.

Also out in Thailand with the team are Adrian Stott (team lead for the long trail) and Angela Mudge (team lead for the Senior women’s mountain race).

We wish all in the British team good luck and hope everyone performs to the best of their ability.

CHIANGMAI SKYLINE ?? These forest covered hills are the setting for the World Mountain & Trail Running Champs this coming weekend. @BritAthletics team settling in & acclimatising well @WMRAmountainrun @iaunews @ITRA_trail @mountainrunuk 3 days to go. pic.twitter.com/jCUyLxr2ec

— Adrian Stott (@TaritTweets) November 1, 2022