BENDIGO'S Andrew Buchanan has claimed his maiden Victorian open cross country championship.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Buchanan captured the title in dominant fashion last Saturday at Bundoora Park.
A small group of less then 10 runners formed at the front as the race surged over the hills of Bundoora Park.
A wet week made the course muddy underfoot, a true test of cross country running, and Buchanan shone, breaking clear from several previous winners through the middle of the race.
He dispatched regional rival, Ballarat’s Jack Davies in the closing stages to have a clear lead with a kilometre to go and went on to win in 30 minutes, 34 seconds.
Racing for the strong Melbourne University Athletics Club, Buchanan’s teammates Nick Earl and Martin Mashford were also in the leading pack, finishing seventh and eighth respectively.
The trio helped MUAC to a season-high second place, behind the ladder leading Box Hill team.
It was only Buchanan’s second cross country race of the season and will secure him a spot on the Victorian team for the Australian Cross Country Championships in August in Canberra.
Buchanan said his focus would return to the roads for the Gold Coast 10km before his coach, Rio bound marathon runner Scott Westcott, set him for the Zatopek:10, Australia’s 10,000m track championships in December.
Buchanan is a specialist coach in athletics for the Athlete Development Program at Bendigo South East College.
