St John's in Varsity Cross-Country 2017

Many congratulations to St John’s students Charlotte Dannatt and Luuk Metselaar who have been selected for the Oxford teams in the 127th Varsity Cross-Country races, taking place on 2 December 2017.

Charlotte, a first-year Biomedical Sciences student, will run in the 7-strong Ladies’ team. Luuk, a postgraduate studying for a DPhil in Theoretical Physics, will run in the 8-strong Gentlemen’s team.

Charlotte commented: 'We are all really excited and are hoping that we can defend the title that we won for the first time in 5 years last year! I'm just going to give it my absolute best and hope that is enough for us to take it!'

Luuk commented: 'Varsity is a very different race from all the others on the calendar. Running is essentially something you do on your own, but at the Varsity Match every single result counts. It is a very special experience to be part of that, and helps you to dig just that tiny bit deeper. The quirky little traditions, like both teams racing in white, making it almost impossible to make out who is who, and the very unassuming start ('On your marks - go'), give it a real retro vibe as well.'

The Varsity Cross-Country races are hosted by Thames Hare and Hounds, the oldest cross-country running club in the world, in southwest London. The Gentlemen's series is currently tied at 63 wins each. Oxford leads the Ladies' series by 24 wins to 17. 

For a schedule of the race times and more details on the venue see the Thames Hare and Hounds website.

Oxford University Cross-Country Club

photo courtesy Oxford University Cross-Country Club