Williams runs away with title
Mark Williams continued his winning start to the 2003-04 season, recording a 33-second victory in the Watson's Hong Kong Cross Country Championships at Hok Tau yesterday.
In previous years the championships have been decided over no less than three events staged at monthly intervals, but this year the Hong Kong Athletic Association decided to host just one race - a decision not universally welcomed by the growing number of cross country runners in the SAR.
Williams, who also won the AVOHK 5km race on Bowen Road two weeks ago, settled into a group of front-runners led by Neil Tait for the 2km uphill climb - the outward leg of the 9km race - but stamped his authority on the proceedings when the 360-strong field reached the demanding trail section, which circumnavigated Hok Tau Reservoir.
'I ran this course last year so I knew I needed to be in front before we reached the trail section, as it's quite narrow and difficult to overtake other runners,' said Williams, a teacher at West Island School in Pokfulam.
From then on Williams dictated the pace and increased his advantage to a substantial margin during the downhill section to reach the finish line in an impressive 30 minutes and 56 seconds.
Meanwhile, Tait and Ng Yan-chi were left fighting each other for second place not far behind, and despite falling three times on the slippery trail section Ng managed to edge Tait for the silver medal, just three seconds ahead in 31:29.
Former champion Gillian Castka had a similarly impressive victory in the women's event to win the title for the fifth time, and at 47 years of age become the oldest winner. Castka's time of 38:47 gave her an 18-second advantage over Cheung Sze-lam, while Yueng Mei-lun was the third woman home overall to win the women's veteran title in 39:30.
