BURY Athletic Club runner Benn Heywood showed his dedication to the cause last weekend when he blizzard conditions to compete in the appropriately named Windy Hill Fell Race near Littleborough.

Heywood may have taken to the start line expecting a war of attrition, but while he crossed the finish battered and bruised by the encounter with Mother Nature he was enthused by what he described as his best race for Bury.

Despite sustaining a knee injury following a fall near the end of the race, the young fell runner held his form to claim an well-deserved first-place finish in the under-23s age category and 10th place overall.

Dedication seems to be a characteristic common to all young members at Bury AC.

And their hard work and determination has been rewarded in recent weeks by the Greater Manchester selectors, who have looked favourably on a string of top-notch performances to pick the clubs young athletes for county honours at forthcoming meetings.

Reilly Carson, Matilda Brett, Enya Hartley, Leah Hancock, Noah Carter and Oliver Horford have been selected to compete for the county team in the Fun in Athletics Festival's North West final at Sportcity in Manchester on Sunday, March 12.

The following Saturday, Grace Goodsell, Amy Garroch, Brandon Wilson and Patrick Clarke have been selected for Greater Manchester's u15s team at the North West Sportshall finals, also at Sportcity.

A Bury AC spokesman said: "The selections underline the great work being undertaken in the club by the coaches and the hard work put in by the young athletes."