OS Team Record Best Result In Recent Years At Alumni Wimbledon Run

The OS Running Team comprising of a record number of alumni achieved terrific results at the annual Alumni Cross Country Race held at Wimbledon Common on 14th December. The OS contingency finished 2nd in the Men’s Open Race and won the Ladies event, beating out stiff competition from over 200 runners of 22 other schools.

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Back Row L-R: Alex Newcome (W 02-07), Ben van Dijk (H 14-18), Andrew Fleck (Principal), Norman Berry (SH 57-62), Alex Dean (S 90-94), Johnny Campbell (SH 12-16), Alice Slattery (L 15-17), Tom Hartley (E 88-93), Andrew Murray (H 89-94), Geoff Watson (E 89-94), Richard Wells (Staff), Freddie Strachan (H 03-08), Martin Askew (H 15-17), George Rigal (W 14-19), Robert Askew (H 15-18), Jon Lidiard (Staff), Sam Fisher (W 06-11), Charlie Mason (S 07-12), Ben Collins (Staff/P 96-02)
Front Row: George Porter (SH 11-16), Maria Page (R 13-18), Josie Coulthard (R 14-18), Sally Bennett (R 13-18), Emma Wood (L 15-17)

The prestigious five-mile race, which was won by Great Britain runner Joe Morwood from Rugby Grammar School Guildford, combines the scoring positions from the top four finishers from each school to give a total score.

This year the top four OS finishers were:

7th – Sam Fisher (W 06-11) 27:57
9th – Ben van Dijk (H 14-18) 28:52
11th – Johnny Campbell (SH 12-16) 29:08
15th – Charlie Mason (S 07-12) 29:42

Also performing strongly were:

23rd – Alex Newcome (W 02-07)
37th – George Porter (SH 11-16)
42nd – Martin Askew (H 15-17)
46th – Robert Askew (H 15-18)
66th – Jon Lidiard (Staff)
70th – Andrew Murray (H 89-94)
196th – Tom Hartley (E 88-93)

Also competing was Principal Andrew Fleck, who this year ran for the Old Marlburians and finished an impressive 15th out of 66 in his category.

In the Ladies event, which takes the top three finishing places from each school to give a combined score, five OS beat out competition from ten other schools to take home the top prize and the trophy.

The Ladies results were as follows:

5th – Sally Bennett (R 13-18) 36:15
6th – Josie Coulthard (R 14-18) 36:16
8th – Emma Wood (R 06-08/Staff) 37:16
9th – Alice Slattery (L 15-17) 37:46
14th – Maria Page (R 13-18) 41:39

Last year, Sedbergh finished 7th in the men’s event and only had one female entrant (Alice Slattery), and in 2017 the OS team finished in 8th place.

Congratulations to all runners who participated and contributed to a fantastic result! Click here to see the full results of the event.

After the race, the team enjoyed celebratory drinks at The Green Man Pub followed by a great dinner at the London Steakhouse. A big thank you to James Robertson (E 88-93) for his continued hospitality and generosity.

Please see below a gallery of photos from the day. You can right click to enlarge each image.