Not in a running race (6)
I believe the answer is:
nation
'race' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'not in a running' is the wordplay.
'running' indicates anagramming the letters.
'not'+'in'+'a'='notina'
'notina' with letters rearranged gives 'NATION'.
(Other definitions for nation that I've seen before include "The Birth of a -, D.W. Griffiths film" , "American Indian people" , "People of a country" , "People of common culture or descent" , "Anoint (anag)" .)