THE RESULTS: Inter-House Cross Country Competition

St Lawrence College held its annual inter-house Cross-country competition on Friday 14^th October 2011 with 144 competitors taking part on a beautiful autumn afternoon.

The two Junior events each went in emphatic style to the pre-race favourites, Olivia Collins of Laing and Towers Andrew Watson, both of whom had represented Thanet at the Kent Schools Championships at Swanley last year.

Andrews bold front-running display saw him complete the 3000m course with just 11:44 on the race clock, well clear of Oscar Gadd, himself a talented runner.   

Olivia who had won the Middle School Girls race last year was the most impressive winner of the afternoon, destroying the Junior Girls field and finishing fully two-and-a-half minutes ahead of the runner-up.   

Another girl following up on last years victory was Pratima Rai.  In notching up her second Senior Girls title, she led home fellow Nepalese runners Suista Gurung and Pabita Thapa this time around, to give the boarders of Bellerby house a clean sweep of the medals.

The Senior Boys event attracted the biggest field, with 33 runners tackling an extended course, incorporating neighbouring farmland, by kind permission of farmer Nick Ash.  Harry Davitt, who had won middle distance track titles as a junior boy, but raced little since, recaptured his old form to win narrowly from fellow Newlands boys Myles Corley and Tim Collins.

The closest finish of the day was in the Middle School Boys race, with Kit Whalley Payne following up last years victory by just two seconds from Cameron teammate Mikey Howarth as 29 others toiled behind.  Meanwhile, Dipa Khatri-Chhetri triumphed in the Middle School Girls race as Courtenay girls filled five of the first six places.

Results:

Senior Boys (Winners: Newlands) 1^st Harry Davitt (N) 18:18, 2^nd Myles Corley (N), 3^rd Tim Collins (N)

Senior Girls (Winners: Bellerby) 1^st Pratima Rai (B) 14:34, 2^nd Suista Gurung (B), 3^rd Pabita Thapa (B)

Junior Boys (Winners: Newlands) 1^st Andrew Watson (T) 11:44, 2^ndOscar Gadd (N), 3^rd Foucauld Wallaert (L)

Junior Girls (Winners Bellerby) 1^st Olivia Collins (La) 13:36, 2^ndAradoyin Smith (B), 3^rd Bhawana Paija (B)

Middle School Boys (Winners: Cameron) 1^st Kit Whalley Payne (Ca) 13:50, 2^nd Mikey Howarth (Ca), 3^rd Harrison Smith (Co)

Middle School Girls (Winners: Courtenay) 1^st Dipa Khatri-Chhetri (Co) 16:29, 2^nd Morgan Guy (Co), 3^rd Soni Garbuja (Ca)