Southend athlete Adam Hickey shook off a viral infection to step up his bid bid to retain the Reebok Cross-Country Challenge under-15 boys overall title.

Hickey had three days off school in the run up to the event but his performance in Wales means he now leads Essex rival Mark Burgess by one point going into the final round.

That will take place as part of the Inter-Counties Championship at Nottingham's Woollaton Park on February 8 and Hickey will be anxious to be first past the post on the day.

Victory would give him the Reebok prize again and would compensate for the fact that Thurrock Harrier Andrew Livingstone snatched the Inter-Counties crown from him last year.

Livingstone has been out of action for much of this season through injury and, with Burgess also giving the race a miss, there was little challenge to Hickey in the latest Reebok round in Cardiff.

Fourteen-year-old Hickey won with a time of 14 mins. 41 secs, 29 seconds ahead of nearest rival Daniel Stafford (West Suffolk).

Hickey led the near 100-strong field throughout over the 4km course.

The previous day, Southend High for Boys pupil Hickey led the Southend team to victory in the intermediate boys at the Essex Schools Championship.

Burgess, running for West Essex, was the individual winner in that event, whose time of 13.32 was 12 seconds faster than that of Hickey.

Published Friday, January 24, 2003

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