Last night, Mo Farah did what everyone expected – storming to victory in the European Championships 10,000m final. But the London 2012 star wasn’t the only Brit to bag a medal. Andy Vernon, who came sixth at the Commonwealth Games recently, ran a season’s best to earn a surprise second-place finish.
The feat may have come as a shock to many onlookers, but Vernon has been on the brink of a breakthrough for quite some time. Here’s a quick guide to the Aldershot runner.
Name: Andy James Vernon
Age: 26
Club: Aldershot, Farnham & District AC
Events: 5000m, 10,000m and cross-country
Career highlights:
2005 – Came 4th in the 5000m at the European Junior Championships 5000m. Also, finished 2nd at the European Junior XC Championships.
2007 – Earned 3rd place at the European Cross-Country Championships for the 1st team in an U23 race. Then came 8th in the 5000m at the European U23 Championships.
2008 – Came 2nd for the 1st team in the U23 race at the European Cross-Country Championships.
2010 – Finished 44th at the World Cross-Country Championships, and 10th in the 10,000m at the Commonwealth Games.
2011 – Came 3rd in the 5000m at the European Team Championships, 1st in the World University Games 5000m and then 9th at the European Cross-Country Championships.
2013 – Finished third in the European Cross-Country Championships.
2014 – Earned 2nd place in the 10,000m at the European Championships.
