Teenager’s bid for National Cross-Country Championships glory

A FROME College pupil is to bid for national glory at the National Cross Country Championships this weekend.

James Porter, who is in year 9 at Frome Community College, qualified for the national finals to be held at Witton Country Park on Saturday 14th March after he shined at the Somerset County Championships and South-West Championships.

The National Championships is a prestigious schools’ event and the pinnacle of competition within the sport. Witton Park is well known to those in the North of England and provides an interesting cross country course.

It starts and finishes on slightly undulating grassy playing fields, with one very steep climb leading to a pretty, but quite challenging, run across the top of the hill, around the saucer, followed by a fun, long and fast downhill section with grassy tussocks, passing through a very muddy gateway at the bottom, leading back onto the playing fields.  There is a long flat run out at the start and the same at the finish.

The first 10 finishers in the junior and intermediate age groups are eligible for selection in the Home International which takes place on Saturday 21st March in Dublin.

Jane Davis from Frome Community College said, “He is excited about the race, but a little shell shocked by his own success – he hopes to do really well but is aware of the magnitude of the size of it, with over 2,000 runners. The college wishes  James all the very best for the championships.”