Athletics: District Short Cross Championship with victories and podiums; Seniors, Veterans and Training in evidence

Castelo de Paiva once again welcomed clubs and athletes from the Aveiro Athletics Association for the 2024 edition of the District Short Cross Championship. An aspect that does not assume the prestige of Cross Longo, which at district level had its championship held last November. Even so, given that on March 16th the municipality of Mira will host the National Short Cross Championship, there are many clubs that took advantage of the district event to fine-tune their preparation.

This sporting season, like previous ones, has been dominated by GDC Guilhovai in seniors and veterans. In turn, the Ovar Athletics Club has also always played a role as a candidate for the podium in the veteran categories.

GUILHO GOES ONE STEP AHEAD OF THE COMPETITION

In seniors, Guilhovai had the male individual winner, Fábio Oliveira; and also female, Marta Martins.

In the men’s race, the São João de Ovar club had absolute control of the collective classification by placing the first 4 classified in the 4 km race and achieving a perfect collective score of 10 points.

The beautiful performances of Fábio Oliveira, Luís Mendes, Vítor Oliveira and Amado Martins contributed to this achievement. Note also the second place in the collective classification, which went to ACR Vale de Cambra, which has Filipe Ferreira, a varsity athlete, in its ranks.

In the female category, showing that Guilhovai is not just male athletes, Marta Martins was always at the front of the race and won the race without any major problems. She was, from the start, the big favorite to win.

VARIOUS VETERANS ADDED DISTINCTIONS

Veteran events are the ones that bring together the most athletes. A factor of concern for those who manage Aveiro’s athletics destinations.

Over the 4 km distance, Sérgio Paiva was the best poleman in the male veterans’ race, finishing in 4th position overall but becoming runner-up in his category. A little behind, André Adriano occupied 5th position and also became runner-up in his category. These two athletes were the best of the Ovar Athletics Club, which had some casualties and was unable to climb the collective podium.

Standing out for Guilhovai are António Castro, Artur Rodrigues, Paulo Pereira and António Fernandes who, together with the rest of the team, achieved the collective title. The second team in the collective classification was Grupo Desportivo Estrelas Vermelhas de Silvalde, featuring the brave Hélder Pires. Finally, Fernando Santos, from AFIS, was the winner of his division.

In the female veterans, Sandra Ferreira won her category and the race, giving GDC Guilhovai another individual title. Representing the Ovar Athletics Club, Marisa João won her division, Lígia Torres and Fátima Aleixo occupied third place on the podium in their divisions. Maria Costa, from the Workers’ Social Services of the Municipality of Ovar, was runner-up in her category.

MORE YOUNG PEOPLE ALSO COMPETED

In addition to the competitions for seniors and veterans, younger people also had the opportunity to compete in Castelo de Paiva. The Arada AC athletes managed to collectively win the children’s category in men’s and women’s categories, largely thanks to the good results of Carolina Cardoso and Davide Cherepov.

The last race of the day had two female athletes standing out, Sofia Teixeira from AFIS and Núria Cardoso from Arada AC, who occupied the first two places in the beginners and youth competition. In the men’s category, Afonso Almeida, from ARVOR, was the best starter.

This was another day of victories, podiums and good performances from varsity athletes and their clubs. With the district short cross country circuit coming to an end, the clubs are now focusing on the national cross country circuit, the outdoor track and the remaining competitions.

Image: Rights Reserved
Text: Alexandre Azevedo