CITY of Plymouth’s Poppy Tank was part of the Great Britain team that won a silver medal in the senior women’s race at the European Cross Country Championships in Portugal on Sunday.
Tank, who had finished second at the British trials in Liverpool last month, was competing at her sixth European Championships.
However, the course in the Mediterranean resort of Lagoa was unlike most other cross country courses with more gravel than grass and lots of sharp turns, but little mud.
Tank packed well with the other Great Britain athletes and finished 22nd overall in a strong field, which was an improvement of four places on last year’s result.
Team-mate Megan Keith took second place, with Phoebe Anderson 16th, Verity Ockenden 21st, Cari Hughes 29th and Izzy Fry 31st.
All six British athletes finished within just over a minute of each other and they won the team silver medal behind Belgium.
Meanwhile, Exeter’s Innes Fitzgerald won her third successive European under-20 title on Sunday in convincing fashion.