LEBID TO SKIPPER EUROPE SELECT TEAM AT BUPA GREAT EDINBURGH CROSS COUNTRY

Evergreen Sergey Lebid will captain the Europe Select Team in the Men's International Team Challenge at the Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country in the New Year.

Lebid, who has dominated the European Cross Country Championships and has been an ever present competitor since the event was first staged at Alnwick, England in 1994, chalked up a ninth success in Albufeira, Portugal, on Sunday. The 35-year-old Ukrainian immediately accepted an invitation to not only to compete at the Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country - the fourth leg of this winter's IAAF Permit Series of meetings - but also skipper the side in Holyrood Park on January 8. Lebid will lead a nine-strong area squad in the inaugural staging of the International Team Challenge, which will feature a clash against Great Britain and Northern Ireland seniors, under-23 and under-20 sides, and what will be a very strong United States team, over eight kilometres. The scenic course in the Scottish capital has been a happy hunting ground for Lebid in the past. The former IAAF World Championships Cross Country runner-up won what was then a fourth successive Euro title there in 2004. Then Lebid returned three years ago to scalp his great rival, Great Britain's current European 5000m and 10000m gold medallist, Mo Farah, in a thrilling 4km clash which went to the wire. "I'm delighted to be appointed captain of the Europe Select Team," Lebid said after outsprinting Spain's Ayad Lamdassem and Youssef El Kalai, in his latest European Cross Country success. The silver and bronze medallists have also been invited to compete, along with the remaining top nine finishers from Albufeira, in the Europe Select Side which will be announced later this week. Lebid added: "I'm certain whoever is chosen will help us give the British and American sides a run for their money, although I'm sure they will be very strong. "Personally I'm happy to be returning to Edinburgh and a great course where I have good memories of my past races there.” The Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country, which will be broadcast live by BBC Television, will also feature an international men's 4km and women's 6km races. Ends Editors Notes Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country 2011- New format The Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country has changed its title for 2011 and was formerly known as the Bupa Great Edinburgh International Cross Country. The 2011 Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country will consist of 3 races, with a new International Team Challenge event. • A short 4.2 kilometre course with the best male athletes in the world competing • A 5.7 kilometre event contested by the world’s best female athletes • The International Team Challenge which will see Great Britain and Northern Ireland Senior Men take on the United States and a European Select team over 8 kilometres. Each country competing in the International Team Challenge will consist of nine athletes per team and the first six athletes to complete the course will receive a score based on their position. The team with the lowest overall score wins. Nova International The Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country Run and Bupa Great Winter Run is brought to you by a partnership between the City of Edinburgh Council, EventScotland and event organisers Nova International and is sponsored by Bupa. Nova International, headed by Olympic Medallist Brendan Foster is one of the UK’s leading event management and sports marketing agencies. The company’s current brand portfolio also includes some of the biggest running events in the world all based on the Bupa Great North Run, the world’s biggest half marathon with over 54,000 entries. Nova International was established in 1988 and has a strong sporting pedigree. Based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Nova has established itself as a market leader in the world of sports marketing and event management. For more information please visit www.greatrun.org. Bupa Bupa’s purpose is to help people lead longer, healthier, happier lives. A leading international healthcare provider, we offer personal and company health insurance, run care homes for older people and hospitals, and provide workplace health services, health assessments and chronic disease management services, including health coaching, and home healthcare. With no shareholders, we invest our profits to provide more and better healthcare. We are committed to making quality, patient-centred, affordable healthcare more accessible in the areas of wellness, chronic disease management and ageing. Employing over 50,000 people, Bupa has operations around the world, principally in the UK, Australia, Spain, New Zealand and the USA, as well as Hong Kong, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, India, China and across Latin America. For more information, visit www.bupa.com City of Edinburgh Council This event is part of the City of Edinburgh Council's Activcity programme, which promotes sport and physical activity events throughout the city. The Bupa Great Winter Run is a great example of an event which helps the people of Edinburgh to get active! www.eventsedinburgh.org.uk. Edinburgh's sporting calendar for 2011 is shaping up to be truly exhilarating, the Touch Rugby World Cup in June, the Nocture City Centre Cycle Race in July, and the Golden Oldies World Hockey the World Karate Championships in September just a taster of what is on offer. For more information, visit www.eventsedinburgh.org.uk. EventScotland EventScotland is the national events agency. EventScotland is working to make Scotland one of the world’s leading event destinations. By developing an exciting portfolio of sporting and cultural events EventScotland is helping to raise Scotland’s international profile and boost the economy by attracting more visitors. For further information about EventScotland, its funding programmes and latest event news visit www.EventScotland.org Entry into Holyrood Park is free for spectators and organisers are encouraging the public to take advantage of the opportunity to see the world’s best athletes compete, as well as the cream of young Scottish athletes on show within the main events and the Scottish Inter District Championships. The Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross Country completes an exciting day of running in Holyrood Park, which starts as hundreds of youngsters take part in the 2.5km Bupa Junior Great Winter Run followed by thousands runners of all abilities taking on the 5km Bupa Great Winter Run. Both events are part of the Bupa Great Run series, organised by Nova International, also organisers of the Bupa Great North Run and the Bupa Great Edinburgh Run. Ends

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