Athletics: Tom Lancashire faces Holyrood field of dreams

Tom Lancashire, the UK's top 1,500m runner last summer, faces a huge task when he opens his 2011 schedule at the Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country on Saturday.

Lancashire, whose personal best of 3 mins 33.96secs at the Diamond League final in Brussels shot him to the top of the UK rankings, will compete in the 4km race against Asbel Kiprop and Brimin Kipruto, who claimed the 1,500m and 3,000m steeplechase titles at the Beijing, Olympics.

Another Kenyan entrant, Eliud Kipchoge, took the 5000m silver medal in the "Bird's Nest" stadium.

Lancashire, 25, will also be up against Spain's Arturo Casado, who finished ahead of him at the European Championships last summer in Barcelona, to the delight of the home fans.

"It's going to be tough for him, particularly facing not only the reigning Olympic and European gold medallists, but also Kipruto and Kipchoge, who are world- class performers in their events," said Peter Riley, the meeting's elite athletes coordinator.

"Tom clearly realises this but had no hesitation in returning to the Holyrood Park venue where last year he just lost out on a podium position, placing fourth.

"He has matured and progressed brilliantly since then and I'm sure he'll give not only the overseas opposition a run for their money but the other Britons in the race."

Ricky Stevenson, who scored the biggest win of his career a year ago against domestic-only opposition at the world's top cross country event, and Nick McCormick, a former two-time winner, also compete. Steve Vernon, double UK 4km champion when the distance was part of the World Cross Country Championships, is also in the field.

Scotland international Freya Murray, meanwhile, has been forced out of Saturday's race through injury.

The 27-year-old Commonwealth Games finalist, who finished eighth in the Holyrood Park race last year, has opted to rest a troublesome Achilles. And Murray admits she wasn't prepared to take a risk with the world championships just eight weeks away.

"I'm going out to South Africa next week and it's going to be pointless if I arrive there and just have to sit by the pool," she said. "I need to be sensible. After missing the Europeans I really want to do the worlds. That's my main focus this winter."