Pop quiz.
Which was the last country not named Kenya or Ethiopia to claim men's team gold at a world cross-country championships? You'd have to rewind 35 years to pre-date that duopoly when England, then competing on her own, topped the standings with Nick Rose landing individual bronze. Since then, a silver from Tim Hutchings apart, the UK's best have returned empty-handed amid almost complete dominance from their East African conquerors.
That, Andrew Butchart insists, won't prevent a good old crack when the 2015 edition is held in the Chinese city of Guiyang on Saturday. "I'd like even to chase the top 30," the Scottish champion declares. "And I'd like to think there's no reason why I can't beat some of the East Africans or even the Americans. I did that in Edinburgh in January. I guess as long as I'm not last that's all right."
On current form, the latter should be an entirely feasible target. Butchart, with ten victories during this winter, would not pretend to be a medal contender but following UK Athletics' belated decision to take a senior squad to the biennial event, he intends to make the most of his maiden voyage to Asia.
There will be A-List names at the head of the field. None of the handful of established British endurance stars have opted in. "I don't know if it's snobbery," the 23-year-old from Perthshire declares. "I just get stuck in. It's always been what my coach wanted.
"I was a bit gutted when Mo Farah pulled out of Edinburgh. I know he'd not done a cross-country for a while but it would have been great to see him up close and go up against him. It's a challenge to be in a race with top class runners. You look at Kenenisa Bekele or Haile Gebrselassie. They do cross every year so why don't others want to do it?"
It is, in truth, a means to an end for most, a preparatory undercoat for the body before applying a satin sheen come the summer. The humidity and altitude that awaits Butchart this weekend will pose questions of his regime. The hours of graft, squeezed in around his day job as a lifeguard at Gleneagles, will - he trusts - allow him to respond.
It plays to a masochistic streak, he acknowledges, toiling in mud, rain and even snow when others are at warm weather camps or doing circuits indoors. "You do have to be a bit mad. I'm not sure how many people like cross-country but I do. Athletics is all about track. Everyone knows it's about track. But I think you do need the strength from cross-country to be good at track. So maybe it's not about being mad but about being smart by doing it."
The ambition is to erase any perception that he is a one-trick pony by the summer's end. Gains can be made, Butchart hopes. "I will chase a fast 5000 metres and see how close I could come to a spot at the world championships."
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