Chris started his running career on the fells at 11. His father, Frank, was a mountain runner, and Chris would often go along to watch him race. After showing an interest in racing, he was entered into some junior fell races, and it quickly became obvious that he had a talent for running. Chris became successful in his age category, winning the U12, U14 and U16 English Fell Running Championships. He also represented England on several occasions, including the World Junior Mountain Running Championships in the Czech Republic, where he finished 16th place.
At 15, he began to show great potential on the track, with his times over 1500m and 3000m significantly improving. He qualified to represent Lancashire over 3000m at the English Schools Championships, placing 3rd in the Intermediate Boys final. The following day he returned to the mountains and won a U16 English Fell Championships race.
After suffering a few ankle injuries on the fells that year, Chris decided to focus only on the track ongoing, using the Cross Country in the winter for his endurance work.
At 17, Chris was the top-ranked U20 1500m runner in the UK, running 3:46.5. Over the next year, he became the AAA U20 national champion, and the English Schools Senior Boys champion over 1500m. This earned him selection for Great Britain Juniors on several occasions on the track, and he was also part of the gold-winning team at the European Junior Cross Country Championships in Italy.
At 19, he accepted a sports scholarship at Providence College, Rhode Island, USA. During his time there, his development plateaued as he struggled to settle into life away from home. His best performances were 4:03 for the mile and 1:51 for 800m. After 18 months, Chris decided to return home and linked up with new coach John Nuttall.
Having settled back into life in the UK, Chris’ athletics began to develop again, and over the next few years, he improved his 1500m performance to 3:42. He made the final of the British Senior Championships over 1500m, finished 5th in the 5000m Championships, and 4th over 3000m (indoors). He had begun to establish himself on the senior stage and was rewarded with several Great Britain selections to compete overseas.
The following year, at 23, Chris was involved in a collision whilst training on the athletics track, which sadly caused a fracture to his foot. This ended a season early, which had the potential to be a breakthrough year in his athletics career. Upon returning from injury, he struggled with acute Achilles tendonitis, limiting his ability to run for some time. After several years, Chris was unfortunately forced to make the difficult decision to hang up his running shoes and focus his energy on his family and professional career.
During this time away, Chris kept himself fit, hoping that one day his body would allow him to return to the sport he loved. Numerous attempted comebacks along the way were met with reoccurring Achilles troubles, but in 2014 and some 11 years later, Chris returned to the track injury free. Now 33, he linked up with coach Helen Clitheroe and went on to become the North of England 5000m champion, achieving performances of 3:47 (1500m), 8:20 (3000m) and 14:25 (5000m). He also finished 5th at the British Indoor Championships over 1500m.
Today, a Vet 40, Chris continues to enjoy and compete well over middle distance on the track. In 2022 he ran 3:53 for 1500m, which was the 5th fastest ever in the UK for a V40, a time that ranked him the quickest in the world that year for his age.
