Results Race 2 (02/12/2023)

Details

Published: 02 December 2023

Division 1 (Updated 03/12/2023)

Division 2

Division 3

Statement from the Chair

Details

Published: 29 November 2023

INPORTANT NOTICE PLEASE READ

Warming up / down on courses while races are in progress

Following incidents at the first fixtures where runners in both the men’s and women’s races were obstructed by athletes warming up / down on the course, both the Birmingham & the Midland Women’s leagues are writing to all clubs reminding them this conduct is not acceptable.

We understand that athletes want to run around the course before the race but lack of respect to athletes racing is not what our leagues are about. If common sense doesn’t prevail the executive will propose a rule for next season that will not allow any warming up while races are in progress and deal with any breaches strongly including deleting the offending club(s) points for that race.  We can enforce this by asking marshals to take photos of the athletes involved as they did for the first fixtures. We hope it won’t come to this but that will be up to the athletes.

However, there is a more serious issue to be dealt with immediately. There were occasions during the first weekend that athletes who were on the course were rude to marshals who asked them to make way for the women’s race. This is unacceptable and if repeated will result in punitive action against the athlete and club.

The clubs are responsible for the actions of their athletes, and I would therefore ask you ensure all your runners are very aware of this notice and that it is reinforced that marshals instructions are to be acted upon immediately.

With all the issues your officers have had to deal with during the close season to ensure this season went ahead the last thing we wanted to find is that athletes, who are the beneficiaries of all this voluntary work, can’t act in a courteous manner towards volunteers.

If any of you would like to discuss the issues raised here, please feel free to call me on 07772 989158.

Noel Butler

Chair

Birmingham  & District Cross Country League

29 Nov 2023

2023/24 Race 2 Details

Details

Published: 28 November 2023

Race Two - 2 December 2023

Division One

Includes Midland Womens League Division One

Venue: Aldersley Stadium, Wolverhampton

Host Club: Wolverhampton & Bilston AC

Details

Division Two

Includes Midland Womens League Division Two

Venue: Clopton Park, Clopton Road, Stratford upon Avon, CV37 6TE

Host Club: Stratford AC

Details

Division Three

Venue: Plock Court, Gloucester, GL2 9DW

Host Club: Severn AC

Details

League Landmarks (28/11/2023)

Details

Published: 28 November 2023

The current table showing the number of league races claimed as being completed by various athletes across the years is shown below. Some of the athletes are still competing and accruing races, some have retired and some, sadly, have died. This table is correct as of the first race of the 2023/24 season. Errors and corrections to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Results Race 1 (12/11/2023)

Details

Published: 12 November 2023

Division 1 (Updated 16/11/2023)

Division 2 (Updated 15/11/2023)

Division 3 (Updated 15/11/2023)

Any issues with published results should be passed to the Division Secretary via your club's Team Manager.

Meet the President (2023-24)

Details

Published: 15 November 2023

Our President for this year is Rob Mulgrue, below is a brief profile that Rob has provided.

Firstly, many thanks to the League for appointing me League President for 2023/4; it is a great honour. My club is one of the founding members of the League back in 1925 and I am also honoured to be its ninth club member to have received the honour.
Like many of us my involvement in cross-country running started at school, the George Dixon Grammar School for Boys, Edgbaston, Birmingham. My first competitive race was for the school third team against Yardley Grammar School second team in 1964 at Tyseley, Birmingham. History does not record the result or my position but I do recall the course included fording a stream. For the 1964/65 and 1965/66 seasons I made my way up to the dizzying heights of the school second team, competing against other Birmingham secondary schools.
I took up running more seriously at University, Swansea 1966 – 69 and Lancaster 1969/70, competing against other Universities and in the South Wales and Gwent Cross-Country Leagues and the Mid-Lancs Cross-Country League. As I was at Lancaster during the vacations, I joined the local club, Lancaster and Morecambe AC, continuing with them until, having moved back to Birmingham to work, the trek back up the M6 on a Friday night became too much and I joined Dudley & Stourbridge Harriers in 1971. My first Birmingham League match was in November that year at Wombourne (97th in Division 2) and my 59th and last one was February 2007 at Northbrook (146th in Division 2). My running career can best be described as persistent but mediocre. My only outright win in a cross-country race was in February 1968 when Swansea University took on the might of Lampeter University, a race memorable as the second-placed runner and I inadvertently herded a lost and nervous cow down a country lane. Fortunately we were not done for rustling!
I became Secretary of Dudley & Stourbridge from 1973 to 76 and continued to serve on the Committee for a number of years thereafter.
Gradually, as I became more useful to the club as a Technical Official than as a competitor I moved over to the former role, first as a Track Judge in 1995 and with the encouragement of the then club Chairman, Brian Shepherd, himself a former League President, I moved through the grades to national and international level until I officiated at the London Olympics and Paralympics as a Track Umpire in 2012. I also became qualified as an Endurance Event official in 2003 and have, so far, officiated at 53 Birmingham Cross-Country League fixtures.
To my mind (trackies may disagree), cross-country running is the most challenging discipline in the sport of athletics, as the distinctiveness of each course, ground conditions and weather gives such variety to which the runner has to adapt – as I had to when I encountered the stream in 1964 at the Yardley Grammar School course.

2023/24 - Race 1 Details

Details

Published: 08 November 2023

Details for Match 1 of the 2023/24 season are below.  For Division 1 and 2 please pay careful attention to the parking information.  There are events on at both the Stadium and the Leisure Centre so parking is at Cheltenham Racecourse, Evesham Road, Prestbury, Cheltenham GL50 4SH - it's a 10/15 minute walk to the course.  Tents can be dropped off by the course, but please don't block the roads surrounding the park.  There is also a carpark pass which must be diplayed.

Race One - 11 November 2023

Division One & Division Two

Includes Midland Womens League Division One

Venue: Pittville Park, Tommy Taylor's Lane, Cheltenham, GL50 4RN

Host Club: Cheltenham & County AC

Details | Carpark Pass

Division Three

Includes Midland Womens League Division Two

Venue: Aldridge Airport

Host Club: Aldridge RC / City of Birmingham Striders

Details

Division 1 Registration

Details

Published: 12 October 2023

An email has gone out to all club contacts regarding registration for the coming season.  It looks like it may have dropped into your spam folders.  Could I ask that all team managers check whether they have received it please.  It will have come from This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  which I'm using to co-ordinate league matters this season.   If you haven't received it, please email me so that I can update my contact lists.

Bryan Mills

Division 1 Race Secretary, Birmingham Cross Country League

Division 2 Registration

Details

Published: 03 October 2023

This year Division 2 is trialing on-line registration for all the races and runners. All being well, this should achieve several things

1. Cut out a huge amount of administration time

2. Enable us to communicate directly with your runners as regards venues, sudden changes, results etc. And vice versa.

3. We have accurate medical and emergency contact details for individuals.

4. Save you poor team managers hours of typing endless details into spreadsheets!

Firstly we ask that you create an account with RiderHQ, and register yourselves with the entry system. Use the link HERE for Team Managers & Officials. This will enable us to easily include you in any emails that are sent out to the runners. If you are a runner as well then you will only get emails once.

Main entries:

Entries for Birmingham Men’s League Division Two Race One are being taken on this link HERE

The first batch of race bibs for Race One will close on 28th October so sign up soon. Once you have entered race one you are automatically be entered into races 2, 3 and 4.

Numbers will be allocated and handed out on race morning to team managers & must be RETAINED for the whole league.

You will receive an automated acknowledgement of your entry and note there will be checks carried out to ensure that all athletes competing in the league are registered with England Athletics.

Carolyn Franks - Life Vice President

Details

Published: 04 July 2023

At the league’s AGM on 2nd June 2023 our secretary Carolyn Franks was elected as the league’s first Life Vice President.
The position was created at the 2022 AGM to recognise individuals who have given exceptional and invaluable service to the league over many years. It should be stressed it is for service to the league not a club within the league. Most clubs have their own way of recognising that service.
It was always intended to be a small exclusive group and it was important that the first recipient set the standard for future nominees.
We could not have chosen a better one with Carolyn’s commitment to the league an inspiration to us all. She did say that one reason for her service was to preserve her late husband Cliff’s legacy. Not only has she done that, but she has built her own legacy as well. The league is indeed fortunate to have Carolyn as its Secretary.
She is a most worthy recipient of this award.

Noel Butler
Chair.

 Carolyn, pictured with Chair Noel Butler and 2023/24 President Rob Mulgrue

Meet the President (2022-23)

Details

Published: 23 March 2023

Our President for the past year has been Vince Carroll.  Vince provided us with an insight into his athletic history.

As a boy I enjoyed running ,football and all sport, I enjoyed the competition against others. Unfortunately my school never really supported cross country so I only ran once in a county schools event when I just entered and turned up myself. When I was 21 I entered the London Marathon to run for charity and from my own devised training plan finished in 3 hours 17 minutes.  People noticed this and encouraged me to join the local running club Northampton Phoenix. I ran my first Birmingham League Division 2 race at Burbage common in November 1991 and ran my 100^th race at Abington Park Northampton in January 2019, I have currently run 109 races, my highest position 69^th in Division 1 and 31st in Division 2.

I have started in the men’s cross country team manager role in 2000 as Phoenix and continued the role in 2002 after the  merger with Rugby until present .I also managed the track team as Phoenix and the first few years of Rugby & Northampton. In that time I have also qualified as a track and field judge also. Over past few years I have spent more time coaching some of the clubs seniors and vets and I have a group of boys and girls who are doing well in the West Midlands Young Athletes League which is the breeding ground to the Birmingham League. This season it was 15^th time Rugby and Northampton have hosted the league and myself and the late John Love who was my mentor and stalwart of the league have contributed as the lead planners.

This year it was my honour to be President of league.  At the first fixture at Stoke I  spoke a few words before the race  and ran the race.  Due to a shortage of our club runners ,I scored in the clubs A team on the day. At the final race at Northampton I had the honour to organise the race and say a few words, but declined starting it as my first love is running in the league.  My race that day was cut short due to a calf injury, but in contrast to the first race the team historically won the event on the day for the first time ever in Division 1.

League Landmarks (14/02/2023)

Details

Published: 14 February 2023

The current table showing the number of league races claimed as being completed by various athletes across the years is shown below. Some of the athletes are still competing and accruing races, some have retired and some, sadly, have died. This table is correct as of the fourth race of the 2022/23 season. Errors and corrections to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Results Race 4 (11/02/2023)

Details

Published: 11 February 2023

Division 1

Division 2

Division 3

Any issues with published results should be passed to the Division Secretary via your club's Team Manager.

League Landmarks

Details

Published: 14 February 2023

The current table showing the number of league races claimed as being completed by various athletes across the years is shown below. Some of the athletes are still competing and accruing races, some have retired and some, sadly, have died. This table is correct as of the third race of the 2022/23 season. Errors and corrections to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Results Race 3 (14/01/2023)

Details

Published: 14 January 2023

Division 1

Division 2

Division 3

Any issues with published results should be passed to the Division Secretary via your club's Team Manager.

League Landmarks

Details

Published: 15 January 2023

The current table showing the number of league races claimed as being completed by various athletes across the years is shown below. Some of the athletes are still competing and accruing races, some have retired and some, sadly, have died. This table is correct as of the second race of the 2022/23 season. Errors and corrections to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Results Race 2 (03/12/2022)

Details

Published: 03 December 2022

Division 1

Division 2

Division 3

League Landmarks (20/11/2022)

Details

Published: 20 November 2022

The current table showing the number of league races claimed as being completed by various athletes across the years is shown below. Some of the athletes are still competing and accruing races, some have retired and some, sadly, have died. This table is correct as of the first race of the 2022/23 season. Errors and corrections to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

We welcome two new members to the list, both from Cheltenham.  Andy Gore completed his 104th race last Saturday, and Derek Hobby completed 110 races between 1950 and 1990.

Race Histories

Derek Hobby

Andy Gore

**Update**  Martin Smith from Massey Ferguson has contacted us to inform us that Ian Redford also completed his 100th Birmingham Cross Country League appearance at the Division 3 fixture at Park Hall Country Park, Stoke on Trent. Ian ran his first Birmingham League at Princethorpe College in November 1985.

Results Race 1 (12/11/2022)

Details

Published: 12 November 2022

Division 1

Division 2

Division 3

Arthur Birt - RIP

Details

Published: 12 November 2022

The league are saddened to learn of the death of Arthur Birt, who served as our President in the 1996/97 season.