Runners tackle relays on Thunderdome circuit

THE roar of racing cars at Calder Park Thunderdome will be replaced by the pounding of thousands of feet in this Sunday’s leg of Athletics Victoria’s cross-country series.

Athletics Bendigo Region will be fielding teams across a range of age groups at the iconic motorsports venue.

Leg distances for the XCR relays will be 7.2km or 3.6km.

Teams of six will run in the men’s premier division and five in the women’s highest class.

The gun for the first wave of races will be fired at 12.30pm.

Athletics Bendigo rolls into this round in third place in men’s premier division.

The charge for Bendigo’s team, aka Bats in the top bracket will be led by Andy Buchanan who ran the Marathon at the Paris Olympics and has run the fastest marathon by an Australian.

Buchanan’s team-mates across this XCR series have included Harrison Boyd, Matt Buckell, Jake Hilson, Matt Miller, Jayden Padgham, Nathan Stoate, Logan Tickell and Shaun White.

The race for the men’s open champion athlete award is being led by Glenhuntly’s Ed Marks on 22 points from Sandringham’s Logan Janetzki, 18; Andy Buchanan and Western’s Zayd Al Sayd, 17.

Bendigo team-mates Stoate and Buckell are fifth and equal sixth on five and 10 points.

The Bats roll into Calder Park in third place in the premier men’s standings on 25 points as Sandringham, 44; and Western, 34; lead the charge.

A tally of 17 points has Bendigo in sixth place in the women’s premier division.

Leading runners for the Bats include Bec Wilkinson, Yazmin Hayes, Kaelee Beveridge, Anne Buckley, Phoebe Lonsdale, Ingrid Woodward, Simoen van der Meent.

Bendigo’s rising stars are in great form.

The Bats are second in the under-16 girls title race and under-14 girls.

Rising stars in Bendigo’s squad include Avery McDermid, Abbey Reid, Tyler Fynch, Jenna Gaskell, Lucy Jones, Milanke Haasbroek and Lyla Edwards.

The experience of Shaun White, Nigel Preston, Chris Armstrong, Katherine Cover, Antony Langdon, Ruth Sandeman, Anne McIntosh, Ingrid Woodward and Debby Kirne has played a key part in Bendigo being to the fore in many of the masters categories.