Poles possess strong spirits | 30.11.2006

Poland caught everyone by surprise at the 2005 SPAR European Cross Country Championships by taking the junior men's team title and they are now setting their sights on striking gold in the inaugural Under 23 race.

Łukasz Skoczyński, Arkadiusz Gardzielewski and Kamil Murzyn were all scorers for Poland 12 months ago in Tilburg, winning the country's first ever gold medal at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships, and the Polish selectors have decided to put their faith in them for the new age category.

The trio will be up against runners as much as two years older than themselves but if they, along with their three compatriots who are a year older, have the same spirit as they did last December it would be foolish to write them off at this year's Championships in San Giorgio su Legnano on December 10.

"We knew we had a chance of taking the team title if we all ran to the best of our ability and we all were running with enormous pride," said Gardzielewski last year in Tilburg, after finishing 10th in the junior men's individual race.

"Everybody in Poland knows that in recent years cross country running has not been a particular strength of our athletics but now we hope that will start to change after this victory. One of the things that help is that we are all friends. There is a new generation of Polish distance runners emerging," said Gardzielewski.

Nevertheless, the rivalry between the friends is still fierce once they are all on the start line.

Skoczyński is the man in form at the moment and just out sprinted Parszczyński in the Poznan cross country meeting on Sunday, which was part of Poland's winter Grand Prix series and also doubled up as a trial for the 2006 SPAR European Cross Country Championships. The pair was both given the same time of 20:03 over the 6,000m course, with Gardzielewski two seconds further back in third.

Marta Wojtkuńska was the women's winner over 4,000m, clocking 13:32 and coming home five seconds in front of Katarzyna Kowalska.

One noticeable feature of the Poznan races, and backing up Gardzielewski's suggestion in Tilburg of a new mood among young Polish distance runners,  was that there was no one over the age of 26 competing in either the men's or women's races.


Poland team (including club affiliations)

Under 23 Men: Łukasz Skoczyński (Budowlani Częstochowa), Łukasz Parszczyński (Polonia Warszawa), Arkadiusz Gardzielewski (Śląsk Wrocław), Hubert Pokrop (AZS-AWF Wrocław), Artur Kozłowski (MUKS Sieradz), Kamil Murzyn (Cracovia).

Junior Men: Marcin Urbanowski (Zantyr Sztum).

Under 23 Women: Marta Wojtkuńska (Vectra Włocławek), Katarzyna Kowalska (Vectra  Włocławek) Sylwia Ejdys (AZS-AWF Wrocław),  Justyna Mudy (AZS-AWF Katowice).

Junior Women: Eliza Gawryluk (AZS UWM Olsztyn).