Kenney enjoys Euro debut

By mpanter

ROYAL Sutton Coldfield AC star Laura Kenney helped Great Britain to third place in the inaugural European Team Championships last weekend.

Kenney finished seventh in the 5,000m – which equalled the place she was predicted to finish – at the competition in Leira, Portugal.

Kenney finished in a time of 15:53.29mins in the race, which included the Devil take the Hindmost elimination format.

"The conditions were tough," said Kenney. "It was really hot and I think the elimination aspect of the race meant that the pace was really quick.

"I did okay but the last three laps were very tough.

"But it was a good experience to be on the senior team for the trip. And the race and surroundings were just another part of my learning curve – it's something that will help my development.

"It was really good to be part of the GB team battling for points and hopefully it's an experience I will get to enjoy again.

"But now I'm looking forward to getting back to normal racing and hopefully I'll be able to work on reducing my time," added Kenney, who is competing over 5,000m at the Gran Premio Andalucia in Malaga on Saturday.

Germany won the European Team Championships with Russia taking second.