Callum Hawkins and Morag McLarty are leading a Scottish athletics revival through the Stirlingshire mud

  • Lindsays National Cross Country at Callendar Park took place on Saturday 
  • There was a record entry of 2,330 by more than 80 clubs at the event

There was something in the air. It was not just the icy droplets of rain carried on a brutal wind. Not the flecks of mud churned up by thousands of pairs of whirling feet.

It was, rather, the almost tangible feeling that Scottish athletics is on the right track and that better days are assured.

The Lindsays National Cross Country at Callendar Park serves as both the national championships and an annual gathering of the Scottish athletics family.

Lindsays National Cross Country at Callendar Park took place on Saturday

Lindsays National Cross Country at Callendar Park took place on Saturday

Saturday’s event was something of an oddity: it was a championships that was nearly cancelled and whose main events were won by two athletes who almost scratched. However, in everything else, it testified to the strength of the sport in Scotland.


There was a record entry of 2,330, there was a huge crowd, there was engagement by more than 80 clubs and there were, crucially, performances of brilliance amid the glaur and under glowering skies.

The winners in the senior events – Callum Hawkins and Morag MacLarty – won with devastating performances that belied their hesitation over competing. MacLarty felt unwell on Saturday morning and travelled to the course more in hope than expectation. She ran away with the 10 kilometre race in a time of 38.22 with Beth Potter second in 39.38 and Sarah Inglis third in 39.50.

If MacLarty was offering a lesson in resilience she also gave an understated masterclass in endurance. At 31, her career has not been as smooth as her victory in the European junior championships some 16 years ago would have suggested.

The Perthshire dentist has had to contend with a series of injuries over the years but showed the future has promise and she may concentrate on the steeplechase as she accepts the 5,000m is now ‘stacked with class’.

Hawkins, of course, has already proved his form this season, beating Mo Farah in Edinburgh last month and beating the Scottish record for the half marathon in Japan earlier this month.

He thought hard about competing on Saturday, worried both that that state of the ground could cause a fall and that it may prove too testing after a hectic period. However, he glided away from the field to win in 33.34 with Chris Jones second in 34.02 and Lachlan Oates third in 34.52.

Hawkins now has New York in his sights. He will compete in a half marathon there in three weeks and will seek to underline his status as the coming man in long distance running. He is part of that advance guard of Scottish athletics including Andrew Butchart, who scratched on Saturday, Lynsey Sharp, Eilish McColgan and, most spectacularly, Laura Muir.

However, there are signs that another line of Scots is ready to push through. A ghost of the past, albeit a very fit one, was on the sidelines on Saturday and he believes Scottish athletics is coming back to robust health.

Graham Williamson, who rubbed shoulders with Seb Coe and Steve Ovett in his heyday, was capable of running a mile in 3.50. He believes there is the opportunity for many to follow in his illustrious footsteps.

‘The depth in Scottish athletics is now remarkable. It is super to see. It was disappointing for so many years but now it very promising,’ said Williamson who works for Adidas. ‘Nat Muir’s 5,000m record has fallen to Butchart and there is a queue of young atheletes ready to make their mark. Josh Kelly, Chris O’ Hare, and Jake Wightman all have promise and other long-standing records are now there to be beaten.’

Williamson was revisiting the site of previous triumphs as a winner of the championship in the eighties but his purpose was to support his son, Jamie, who finished third behind Broc Drury of Aberdeen and Euan Gilham in the men’s under-20 event.

‘It was a real test and I am delighted for him as a track runner as he was able to run in all that mud,’ he said. ‘This gives you mental strength.’

There was a record entry of 2,330 by more than 80 clubs at the event

There was a record entry of 2,330 by more than 80 clubs at the event

Jamie, 19, now studying sports management at Loughborough University, only took up running five years ago after playing football. His brother, Matthew, 18, plays Bundesliga basketball but Jamie is set to follow mum and dad in an athletics career.

Carole Williamson was an English cross country champion but Jamie sees his future on the track, possibly at 1,500m.

If Jamie’s example is near at hand, it was intriguing to hear from winners of all age events how the exploits of the Scottish elite is felt down the line.

Lily Jane Evans-Haggerty was an impressive winner of the under-15 girls and seems already to have a strong focus.

‘I have been running from 10 years old,’ said the Victoria Park athlete. ‘I won my age group here last year and I just love cross country. I like the idea of pushing myself and setting targets. I just love Laura Muir.’

Erin Wallace, a GB internationalist, won the under-17 event and will head to the Commonwealth Youth Games in Barbados in July.

The Giffnock North athlete also talked of the powers of inspiration, again citing Muir who is routinely smashing records at 1,500m and at 1,000m.

It was noticeable, too, that there was a crowd of besotted youngsters around Hawkins when he reached the finishing line. ‘The most intriguing thing is that athletics in Scotland has become high-profile again,’ said a long-standing observer and one-time participant in the sport.

‘There were more than 1,000 kids here today just to run and many of them have posters of Hawkins or Muir or Butchart on their wall,’ he added as we sheltered from a squall.

The perfect storm of the momentum from London 2012 and Glasgow 2014, intelligent support by Scottish Athletics of local clubs and the power and example of elite athletes has conspired to create a wind of change that may carry the sport to even higher levels.

It was a warming thought to dispel the chill in the bones of a demanding but invigorating day.