Courtney-Bryant and Kavanagh claim UK 5km titles in Cardiff
The duo both impressed on the roads to triumph over 5km at Bute Park in the Welsh capital.
Melissa Courtney-Bryant and Jack Kavanagh secured victories in the elite races at the SportsShoes Podium Home Nations 5km in Cardiff on Sunday (September 27).
The fifth edition of the event, which doubled up as the UK Athletics 5km Road Race Championships, took place at Bute Park and saw both favourites triumph.
For Courtney-Bryant it didn't just represent a chance to test her speed endurance but also run on home soil, with her mum having grown up in Caerphilly, less than 10 miles away from Cardiff.
Competing in a strong field that also included the likes of Charlotte Dannatt and Clara Evans-Graham, Courtney-Bryant would have known that it wouldn't be an easy job to take the plaudits.
Running a three-lap course around Bute Park, the trio led from the front early on and established a sizeable gap to the second pack, which included Abbey Brooke and Kitty Shepherd-Cross.
Courtney-Bryant, who has built her career around the 1500m, mile and 3000m, used her strong kick to full effect late on, breaking away from both Dannatt and Evans-Graham to run 15:40, with the pair behind her clocking 15:47 and 15:52 respectively.
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Even though the 33-year-old has started to race more frequently over 5000m over the past couple of years, most of those have taken place on the track. Her last race over 12.5 laps was back in May when she clocked 15:10.93 at the Shanghai Diamond League. One month later she lined up at the London 5000 in Highgate but tore her calf during the race.
Courtney-Bryant had just six and a half weeks to recover before the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where she was named Welsh team captain and ran 4:39.50 at Scotstoun Stadium.
"I just wanted to represent Wales at the Commonwealth Games," Courtney-Bryant told AW after her 5km win in Cardiff. "Since then I have thrown myself into races off probably not the normal build that I would have had. I am healthy now so that's the main thing.
"As soon as I hurt myself back in June I knew that the Europeans was out of the question but I still had the Commonwealths. You just have to be really confident and trust the team around you. They all helped get me there and boost me on those down days. It was about improving each day and focusing on what you could.
"To be a good 1500m runner you do have to do well in the 5000m/5km as well. I’m definitely more of a 1500m/5000m runner than an 800m/1500m runner! It's a really nice way for me to finish my season here in Cardiff. There were so many Welsh supporters here!"
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In a similar ending to the elite men's race in Cardiff, Kavanagh had to produce a late kick of his own to secure the victory. An ever-present at SportsShoes Podium events – he has already raced in Battersea Park, Dulwich, Battersea and Leicester – the 26-year-old arrived in Cardiff with a PB of 13:34 and was the man to beat in the Welsh capital.
Having initially taken up running during the Covid-19 pandemic simply because he enjoyed being outside, he subsequently left teaching to pursue running on a full-time basis. The last couple of years have helped vindicate that decision, having not just represented England but also finishing second to Josh Kerr over 5000m at last season's UK Athletics Championships.
This UK 5km title in Cardiff represented another step in the right direction for Kavanagh, but victory was not easy for the distance runner, with just seven seconds separating the top four.
The early stages of the race saw the race strung out, led by Kavanagh but with the likes of Joseph Tuffin, Finley Proffitt and Charlie Brisley close on his heels.
The expectation was that Kavanagh wouldn't relinquish that lead but on the last lap in Bute Park, Tuffin hit the front with around 400 metres to go. Not to be denied however, Kavanagh found something extra and regained the lead with a fine kick in the last 150 metres of the race. Putting his right arm into the air as he crossed the line in 13:50, Kavanagh shouted "yes" and it was clear to see what the win meant to him.
The three athletes behind Kavanagh – Tuffin, Proffitt and Brisley – ran 13:54, 13:56 and 13:57 respectively.
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"There was big relief at the end and it was all about position and not the time," Kavanagh, who is coached by Neil Danby, told AW after his 5km win in Cardiff. "I thought I perhaps lost it but I found another gear coming down the home straight. I have always naturally had a good kick but that was also about mentality. Your body is screaming at you at that point but I wanted it so badly.
"Days like this is what makes that gamble to leave teaching so worth it. There were many tears when I said goodbye to the kids but this is the kind of win which makes me think 'yeah I've made the right choice'. I hope they were watching on the Youtube livestream today and cheering me on.
"I want to use this title as a momentum and it's now getting stuck into cross-country season. I don't actually get the sense I need to take a break and I just want to roll straight into high mileage. I am nowhere near as good as I can be. There is so much more to learn and try out in the sport. We're yet to try the hard and intense training, including at altitude The chassis is built so it's now time to turn on the engine."
Elsewhere at the SportsShoes Podium Home Nations 5km, Harry Colson clocked 15:16 to beat Joe Matthews by five seconds in the men's B race, while Rufus Thomas triumphed in the open race in 16:49.
