Disability Sport Fife owes so much to the late outstanding volunteer John de Courcy plus Shona Malcolm OBE from Scottish Athletics. These two individuals played a very significant role in establishing the very successful East Series Cross Country programme that now plays such an important part in the DSF calendar of events.
The 2019/2020 programme is now about to get under way over the winter with three events in Lothian and one in Fife early next year at the Beveridge Park in Kirkcaldy. Dates have been widely publicised and appear on this Facebook page. Entry forms have been circulated. These events are organised by SDS and Scottish Athletics along with the National Championships at Bellahouston Park next year.
Fife athletes will hopefully access in significant numbers the leg of the East Series and the Fife Championships organised by DSF and Fife Athletic Club. Both of these events are held at the Beveridge Park.
Over the years the number of athletes involved in cross country has risen significantly. The increase in interest has had a major impact on the strength of the Fife track and field squad. There are more Fife athletes training for distance events or longer sprints in 2019 than ever before and this has had a major effect on our ability to contest a wider range of events at the National Junior and Senior Championships. The two most successful Fife AC athletes who have come through this system are Owen Miller and Sam Fernando from Woodmill High School and Bell Baxter High Schoolrespectively. Each of these athletes has been inspired by GB Paralympian Derek Rae.
There is now a fourth Fife AC athlete who is making his mark in distance running, having already achieved considerable success in swimming, cycling and in particular water skiing. Carter Taylor from Dunfermline is enjoying his most successful season to date and last weekend at theLochore 10k he finished 6th overall and 2nd senior athlete. Carter’s time was 00:37:24, just over a minute behind the winner. Fantastic progress for the west Fife athlete who goes from strength to strength with every event and cannot wait for the cross country season to get under way.
Carter is a relative newcomer to distance running but he is improving with every competition and following in the footsteps of Owen who is one of the world’s leading 1500m runners and Sam who excels in 3Km steeplechase. Derek of course won silver in T46 marathon at the IPC World Championships held during the 2019 Virgin Money London Marathon.
Hopefully this season’s cross country programme will highlight some new distance athletes with potential and perhaps some girls to strengthen team Fife. The DSF partnership with Fife AC and the role played by coaches Ron Morrison and Steve Doig in particular has contributed considerably to this very unique athletics story.
Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees