Front-running Britton untouchable in Antrim

FIONNUALA BRITTON beat a quality field to notch up another victory in Saturday’s IAAF Grand Challenge Cross Country International over a rain-sodden course in Greenmount, Antrim.

The European Cross Country champion had her opponents under pressure from an early stage with her front-running tactics. Britain’s Emma Steel made a brave attempt to contain Britton and closed in on her near the halfway mark, but in the final lap Britton again picked up the pace to win from Steel and the Ethiopian pair Birtukan Adamu and Mekele Bekele.

Britton explained: “I wanted to run my own race and that is why I went out hard from the start. Then, with a lap to go, I felt strong enough to push on again.”