Several of the biggest names in the sport will be in Scotland this Saturday for the Bupa Great Edinburgh XC race. Defending champion Garrett Heath will battle East Africa’s finest in the International 4k, while Chris Derrick will look to repeat his victory from a year ago in the 8k team competition. This early season race has long attracted the top athletes to the UK, with 5k/10k world record holder Kenenisa Bekele winning the long course race from 2006-2008. 2011 champ Mo Farah had been slated to run again this year, but withdrew earlier this week due to sickness. 

 

INTERNATIONAL 4K

This stacked start list resembles a Diamond League race, with 1500m studs Asbel Kiprop and Silas Kiplagat right at the top. These two men always create fireworks when matched up against each other, but 4km is a quite a bit longer than what they are used to, and should be an excellent test of early season fitness. Kiprop won this event in 2013 before placing 2nd last year. 

The Americans have the defending champion in Garrett Heath, who broke the internet last year by beating both Kiprop and Bekele to secure the greatest victory of his career. His time of 11:51 stands as the short course record in Edinburgh.

 

Heath will be joined in Scotland by two American legends in Bernard Lagat and Dathan Ritzenhein. The 40-year-old Lagat should be very comfortable with the 4k distance, as it falls between his two best events- 3k and 5k. Lagat ran SB’s of 7:38.51 and 13:06.68 in those distances in 2014, respectively. 

 

Ritzenhein will go for his second victory in the span of five days on Saturday. Ritz won the Campaccio 10k in Milan, Italy this past Tuesday in 29:08, his first race since August. The 32-year-old still has his eyes set on the marathon, but he is arguably the greatest cross country runner in American history, with three US titles to his credit. Saturday will be a much tougher test than the 10k in Milan. 

 

Three Kenyans to watch are Japhet Korir, Thomas Longosiwa, and Jairus Birech. Korir won the mud fest that was World XC 2013 as a 19-year-old, the same race that the Americans surprisingly took 2nd. Longosiwa and Birech are both proven track runners, with Longosiwa boasting a 12:49 5k PB and Birech owning a 7:58 3kST PB. 

 

PREDICTION: Asbel Kiprop has world class ability from the 800m to cross country. The 3:27 man will take back the Great Edinburgh title on Saturday. 

 

INTERNATIONAL TEAM CHALLENGE

Men's 8k: 2014 champion Chris Derrick headlines Team USA’s efforts in Scotland. Despite Derrick’s victory last year, the Americans fell short of Team Europe 53-55, and will look to avenge that defeat with a much stronger group donning the Red, White, and Blue in 2015. 

 

Joining Derrick on Team USA will be Reed Connor, Andrew Colley, Bobby Curtis, Bobby Mack, Jacob Riley, Jonathan Grey, Tyler Pennel, and Craig Forys. Mack finished fourth at this race last year, while Curtis was the top American at the Chicago Marathon in October with his 2:11:20 ninth place finish. 

 

These nine Yanks will face teams from Great Britain and Europe at Edinburgh. World-beater Mo Farah was originally the headliner for Team GB, but he pulled out on Monday because of sickness. European XC champ Polat Kemboi Arikan of Turkey will lead his team’s effort to repeat as champions, while former New Mexico All-American Luke Caldwell will do his best to rally the Brits in Farah’s absence. 

 

PREDICTION: Expect to see a lot of red up front. Chris Derrick has no equal in Scotland. 

 

Women's 6k: Euro XC and reigning Edinburgh champ Gemma Steel leads the host nation’s effort in the 6k women’s race. Steel took down NCAA XC champion Kate Avery at Euros last month in a photo finish in Bulgaria. 

The 29-year-old Brit faces her biggest threat from Americans Tara Erdmann, Angela Bizzari, and Emma Bates. Erdmann and Bizarri went 2-3 at last month’s USATF Club Cross, while Bates just finished her last collegiate cross country season by placing third at NCAAs. This trio of Americans should propel Team USA to a better finish than their cellar position from a year ago. 

 

PREDICTION: Gemma Steel will make the UK proud by taking her second straight Edinburgh crown. Team USA is much improved from 2014, but they do not have the firepower to overcome the Brits, who scored just 35 points last year.