Swinburn secures win with late surge

Mar 24 2008 The Journal

MORPETH Harrier Nick Swinburn won yesterday’s highly-competitive fourth North Tyneside 10km Road Race.

In the event staged from North Shields Sports Centre to St Mary’s Lighthouse, Whitley Bay, Swinburn waited until the final 400m before sprinting away from club-mate Nathan Shrubb, with 2007 winner, James Buis of Heaton, close behind in third place. The winner, a student at Bangor University, was also a member of the winning North East team at last weekend’s Inter Counties Cross Country Championships.

The extremely windy conditions meant that no one was prepared to make an early bid for victory, though Swinburn had tried three times to pull away from the leading group of five, but decided against it. Mike Grifiiths from Staffordshire – second in 2007 – finished fourth and Stewy Bell of Chester-le-Street was the leading veteran in fifth place.

Morpeth easily won the team event for the third successive year. Gateshead Harrier Jessica Trowbridge, second in the Elswick race two days earlier, convincingly won the women’s race, finishing 21st in the record field of 1,900 runners.

Marathon specialist Angela Hibbs of Chester-le-street took second place ahead of student Alex Snook of Shildon. Heather Robinson of Chester-le-street led the veterans home, in 11th place. Heaton unofficially regained the team title, which they last won in 2005.

Meanwhile, Durham University student Emma Waterhouse won the women’s overall trophy at this weekend’s Isle of Man Easter Festival.

Waterhouse won the 10km on Friday (38:37), finished fourth in the Hill Race on Saturday (18:37) and won the 5km yesterday (18:12).

Morpeth’s Sarah Graham (Leeds University) was second overall, finishing fourth in the 10km (38:37), third in the Hill Race (18:27) and third in the 5km (18:26). Durham’s Rosie Smith (Edinburgh University) won the Hill Race (18:25) and was second in the 5km (18:30).

SUNDERLAND Harrier Patrick Martin overcame the windy conditions to win the Mermaid 10km at Marske. Cumbrian Sarah Tunstall, who represented Great Britain in December’s European Cross Country Championships in the under-23 race, comfortably defeated Carolyn Summersgill of Middlesbrough in the women’s race.