TWO runners represented Horwich at the European Mountain Championships in Slovenia on Saturday, with Ian Conroy running for Ireland and Chris Farrell in the GB vest.

It was Conroy’s fifth European Championship and he made it his best yet with 23rd position and first counter for his country.

It was Farrell's first time at the event and he finished as GB’s second counter of three in 28th place.

Conroy said it was “great to be part of a history-making Horwich duo in boiling hot Slovenia”, while coach Martyn Bell said: "To be first and second counters for your international teams is just fantastic."

The heat was on in the latest round of the English Fell Championships at Wasdale with 50 retiring from the race.

Carl Bell, third to Farrell at the Rivington Pike race, won this classic fell race and Steven Foley was Horwich’s sole finisher.

Three Horwich runners who did not make it to the Lakes achieved an impressive one-two-three at the Bull Hill fell race, with Phil Marsden clear of Michael Cayton and Nick Leigh.

The same evening Richard Howarth was first at Cuerden Valley, where he is a regular parkrun winner too, and Mark Walsh was fifth at Tockholes, with Neil Holding eighth.

Holding also featured strongly in the We Love Manchester road race three days later where he was 23rd and took the M55 first prize.

In the same race of more than 1,800 runners, Rob Jackson was 19th and won the M50 first prize.

At Astley Park, Julian Goudge maintained his series lead with a second place behind a strong-running Anthony Valentine from Bolton United Harriers.

With only one race left it will probably be one of these two who will win the series if they maintain this sort of form.

Paul Muller is in fifth place in the series after a second consecutive eighth-placed finish.

The Horwich juniors had a good turnout at Astley Park too. Emma Bradley has won the under-11 series with one race still to go and is now the third fastest u11 girl in the country over a mile.

In the u17 series, Isabella Merritt and Milly Lever hold third and fourth places respectively while in the boys’ series, Lewis Wilkes and Matthew Flatters are second and fourth in the u17 age group, while Oliver Gibson is fourth at u11 and William Kay third at u8.

At the English Schools' national championships in Birmingham, Niall Maloney was seventh in the long jump final.

Locally, Ben Topham took third place at the Queens Park junior parkrun.

Lewis Wilkes continued his fine run of results with second at Bolton parkrun with Luke Brindle in fourth.

Isabella Merritt was second female at Southport, while Simon Pymm, Richard Howarth and Nick Leigh made it another hat-trick for Horwich with parkrun wins at Worsley, Cuerden and Witton.

Horwich RMI Harriers results: Astley Park trail race – 2nd Julian Goudge 25:34, 8th Paul Muller 26:57, 67th Gordon Stone 36:35.

Bull Hill fell race (Hawkshaw) – 1st Phil Marsden 34:03, 2nd Michael Cayton 35:22, 3rd Nick Leigh 35:56, 6th Alastair Murray 38:34, 16th Dan Gilbert 41:19, 25th Gary Chadderton 42:44, 125th Doug Fleming 52:09, 201st Raymond Stafford 1:07:30, 219th Ed Swift 1:19:22.

Cuerden Valley trail race (Bamber Bridge) – 1st Richard Howarth 36:25, 29th Rudolf Maciejkowicz 47:51, 40th David Barnes 51:04.

Tockholes fell race (Darwen) – 5th Mark Walsh 40:23, 8th Neil Holding 41:00, 11th Andy Ford 41:07, 51st Tony Hesketh 51:02.

European Mountain Racing Champs (Kamnik, Slovenia) – 23rd Ian Conroy 1:09:02, 28th Chris Farrell 1:09:47.

Wasdale Horseshoe fell race – 177th Steven Foley 6:03:26.

Hendon Brook road race (Nelson) – 96th Tony Hesketh 1:58:28.

We Love Manchester 10K road race – 19th Robert Jackson 37:40, 23rd Neil Holding 37:50.

Bollington Nostalgia fell race – 65th David Barnes 1:04:13.

Run Through Tatton Park 10k race (Knutsford) – 302nd Brenda Hesketh 1:08:04.