Athletics and Cross Country

Find out more

• Training

  Athletics:
  Athletics Tuesday and Thursday track sessions are led and coordinated by one of Fife’s top sprints coaches and the clubs own Athletics Captains. During the session, the team will generally be split into a Sprints (up to 400m), Middle Distance (up to 3000m), and Field focussed training groups, each with tailored work outs. Many Middle-Distance athletes regularly alternate between Athletics and XC sessions in order to make the most of the training types on offer with the club. Throughout the season the team will follow a training plan designed to get the absolute best out of each individual regardless of level or discipline.

  Cross Country:
  These sessions are led by Fife’s highly experienced Scottish Athletics qualified coaches and are targeted at those running longer distance (5km upwards). Our relationship with Fife Athletic Club allows us to train with more experienced runners and helps everyone to train with runners of their pace.

  Circuits:
  Circuits are led by experienced club members and are aimed at improving core strength and mobility, an important and often under appreciated aspect of effective training.

  Intervals:
  Intervals focus on improving speed, form and endurance. These are open session and anyone can attend. The club aims to foster a supportive atmosphere, encouraging anyone who hasn’t tried interval training to come down and get involved.

  Club Run:
  The Club run offers a chance to explore the paths and surrounding area of St Andrews together as part of a social run. Runners are divided into multiple pace groups so everyone is catered for.

  Tempo/Intervals/Plyo sessions:
  Held on a non-race weekend and allow the athletics and cross country sections of the club to train together. These sessions may alternate with a club Parkrun, held at 9:30 am at Craigtoun Country Park.

• Competition

  Athletics:
  The University competes at five main athletics competitions throughout the year, but these are supplemented by a number of inter-university competitions.

  – BUCS Indoor Championships
  – BUCS Outdoor Championships

  – Scottish Universities Freshers Match
  – Scottish Universities Indoor Championships
  Scottish Universities Outdoor Championships

  Cross Country:
  The cross country team competes in many different races throughout the year, including cross country, road, and hill races.

  – Scottish Student Sports (SSS) events
  – BUCS championships
  – Scottish National, Scottish East, and local events

• Additional Club Information

  Community Engagement:
  The club are very active in the local community and take pride in supporting the local St Andrews Parkrun, which takes place every Saturday morning in Craigtoun Country Park.

  Volunteers from the club takeover the running of the event periodically every semester, and encourage all members to attend Parkrun every week.

  Charity Fundraising:
  Throughout the year the club hosts a variety of fundraising events to raise money for charity, including charity fun runs, sponsored challenges and bake sales. All club members are encouraged to get involved and annual poll takes place to determine which charities the club is going to support for the forthcoming academic year.

  Trips Away:
  Members of the Athletics and Cross Country Club have many opportunities to travel across the country, with multiple weekend trips to races organised throughout the year.

  Highlights include: Manchester Relays, Braids Hill Race, BUCS National Championships and the Isle of Man Easter Running Festival. The club also aims to run a club weekend away early in Semester 1 to help new members settle in and get to know the rest of the club for the year to come.

  Events:
  A highlight of the year occurs right here in St Andrews in September, when the club hosts the first Scottish Student Sport (SSS) cross country winter league event of the year; the infamous Chariots of Fire beach race.

  A 5km out and back dash along the stunning West Sands – it’s a great way to start the race calendar competing against students from other universities across Scotland.

  Socials:
  The athletics and cross country community in St Andrews is hugely supportive and friendly, and away from training and competition the club provides a warm and inviting social scene and weekly run events.

• How to get involved

  Whether you are new to the sport or an experienced athlete, already attend the University or if you are thinking about attending, please get in touch to register your interest and find out more about our club.

  The University hosts a Sports Fayre at the beginning of each academic year during Orientation Week, giving prospective players the opportunity to talk to club members and sign up to ‘Give It A Go’ sessions.

  Please email the club to register your interest: [email protected]

  Club Membership

  All matriculated students at the University can join the Athletics and Cross Country Club.

  Please visit the Saints Sport website for a full list of club membership options, prices and information on how to purchase your membership.