Olympian Steph Twell is set to race the Lindsays National XC at Falkirk next month.

It will be the first time Twell has ever competed at Callendar Park, with the event on Saturday, February 23 sure to be a huge attraction to our club community once again.

After a recent successful switch to the marathon, the presence of Commonwealth and European track medallist Twell immediately raises the standard of a Senior Women’s race where the depth continues to grow year-on-year.

And the 29-year-old will certainly have her sights set on completing a remarkable National XC Championship double – ten years ago she won the Senior Women’s gold at the English National XC at Leeds in 2009.

"I am really pleased to be racing at my first Scottish National XC in Falkirk – it’s about time!," said Twell.

"While previously I have represented my club at the English National, moving full-time as an athlete has now given me the opportunity to compete in the races I haven't done before.

"I think the cross country conditions, as well as the distance, will be a suitable test to see how fit I am at that stage before I return to the roads.

"The Lindsays XC is a race I wish I'd been part of in the past couple of years, seeing fellow competitors and GB team-mates like Mhairi Maclennan and Beth Potter in the mix and vying for the title and the podium.

'So I'm excited to see how I fare on the course this year. It’s 10k, which I am pleased to see is the same as the men’s, and hopefully there’s a really big entry once again for all the races at Falkirk."

Twell will prepare for Callendar Park with an appearance on the roads as part of the Scotland team for the Armagh International Road Races where she will race over 3k.