Former Radley athlete Hatti Dean finished 21st at the 39th IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Punta Umbria, Spain on Sunday.

In temperatures approaching 80 degrees Farenheit, Dean was the second Briton to finish, crossing the line in 26mins 35secs.

The first British athlete home was European junior cross country champion Charlotte Purdue, who completed the 8km four-lap course in a time of 26.03.

It was another fine display by Dean, who rarely runs a bad race.

However, she discounted suggestions that she runs well in hot conditions.

“It’s funny, everybody thinks I like running in the heat because I did well in the World Cross Country Championships in Mombasa in 2007,” she said.

“I hate it. I don’t enjoy it at all, I just seem to run all right in it.

“I was pleased with how I paced it, although I found myself a bit stranded at one point, where I couldn’t stay with the pack ahead of me.

“I wanted to hold onto that group, and I felt if I’d gone a bit quicker, I might have held on to them.”