Ben Flanagan wins NCAA Great Lakes Regional XC Championships
The Canadian becomes the third Michigan Wolverines man to win the Great Lakes Regional Cross-Country Championships
First it was Kevin Sullivan. Then Nate Brannen. Now, the latest Canadian to win the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Cross-Country Championships for Michigan men is Ben Flanagan.
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The Kitchener, Ont. native won the regional event in the leadup to the American university cross-country championships on Friday becoming the third Canadian and Michigan student among men to win the championship. He won the 10K in 30:54, six seconds over second-place.
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? @bennyflanagan ? @UMichTrack #NCAAXC pic.twitter.com/T7XILZ0A7i
— FloTrack (@FloTrack) November 10, 2017
The Great Lakes Regional Championships were held in Terre Haute, Ind. at LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course, one of the most popular venues in the United States. Michigan earned a berth at nationals by finishing second – top two automatically qualify – as a team.
According to Michigan Track, Sullivan, one of Canada’s all-time great middle-distance runners, and Brannen, a three-time Olympian, won the NCAA regional event when they were Wolverines in 1993-95 and 1997 as well as 2004. Sullivan is the cross-country head coach at Michigan.
Jaimie Phelan, the 2017 NCAA 1,500m champion, also attends Michigan, a university rich in Canadian athletics history, but did not race on Friday.
The NCAA Division One Cross-Country Championships are Nov. 18 in Louisville, Ken.