Wreake and Soar Valley AC Athlete Heads to World Championships
Wreake and Soar Valley Athletics Club member, Zoe Gilbody has been selected to represent GB at the World Cross Country Championships in Australia. It is the clubs first member to be selected to compete on the global stage. Flying out on the 13th February, she will have just five days “down under” to acclimatise to the Australian Summer conditions, which could reach well into the high 20’s, and the inevitable jet lag from the long flight. She will fly out from London to Doha, then to Sydney before the final leg of the journey to Bathurst where the championships take place on the 18th February.
Coached by John Skevington, Zoe will be competing in the under 20 age group competition, an incredible achievement at only 16 years old. This comes on the back of her selection at the beginning of January to represent England to take part in a high quality event. The famous “Cross International Juan Muguerzain” staged at Elgoibar in the North of Spain which she convincingly won.
Her competition in Australia will come from some of the highest quality running cultures on the planet. This will include a strong Kenyon contingent. A country that has dominated world athletics for many years.
Zoe commented ”I am absolutely thrilled to have been selected for the championships in Australia, a place that I have always wanted to visit, having missed out on the European championships earlier in the year due to illness.”
Zoe will be targeting other international opportunities both for England and Great Britain during the coming months!
Foot note!
Wreake and Soar Valley Athletics club offer opportunities for athletes and runners of all ages and standards NOT just internationals!!!