THOUSANDS attended and took part in the Taunton half-marathon, which returned this year for its 40th event under three new organisers who are ‘extremely proud’.
On March 1, the Taunton half-marathon returned after a four-year wait, under the helm of Active South West, run by Taunton men Dan Brice, 45, Alex Bennett, 33, and Dave Urwin, 44, to the town centre, with around 2,000 runners taking part in the event.
According to Dave, the return of the event saw an ‘unprecedented’ level of interest, with the 2,000 entries capacity being reached in October and the waiting list being more than 700 runners long at one point.
The race itself was kicked off by Cllr Martin Straus, Mayor of Taunton, at 10am near the Old Taunton Municipal Building, with runners called to the starting funnel around 10-15 minutes before the race officially started.
Pacers were also present to help runners achieve a range of times, ranging from an hour and 30 minutes to three hours. Those wishing to run faster than an hour and 30 minutes were not given a pacer and stood at the front of the starting funnel.
The route, which covered around 13.1 miles, was fully marked and marshalled by close to 200 volunteers on the day, with multiple road closures in place. The finish was located on North Street next to the roundabout in the vicinity of The Spud Shack.
At 10.15am, the kids’ kilometre also took place for the first time, followed by a local mascots’ race, then it was time to wait for the first runner to get back.
During the event, Cllr Martin Straus, the Mayor of Taunton, said: "It's great to be here in Taunton this morning, we just kicked off the adult half-marathon, and now I have the joy of setting off these wonderful children.
"It's the first year we have had the children's half-marathon, so it's an absolutely wonderful day, and I am pleased to be here."
The overall winner of the Taunton half-marathon was ‘pre-race favourite’ Jamie Williamson from Bristol, and the first female was Serane Stone of Bideford AAC.
Awards were handed out at around 2.15pm by the former director of the half-marathon, who ran it for 39-years, and Paralympic bronze medallist Hannah Taunton.
When asked how she was feeling at the event, Hannah said: "Today I helped out at the Taunton half-marathon, and it was really amazing achievements for those people, and I started the Taunton half, and then I really enjoyed giving out the presentation awards to the ladies, and it was absolutely a fantastic atmosphere."
The final winners were:
Top three men:
- Jamie Williamson (Bristol & West Athletics Club) - 1:08:03
- Chris Hewitt (Tiverton Harriers) - 1:09:28
- Tom Addison-Wood (local runner) - 1:12:29
Top three women:
- Serane Stone (Bideford AAC) – 1:29:10
- Ellie Clist (Plymouth Triathlon Club) – 1:30:04
- Rachel Astington (no club listed) – 1:32:31
1st Senior (Under 30) Male: - Adam Fieldhouse (Crawlers - Adam designed the trophies for the race) - 1:13:56
1st Senior (Under 30) Female: - Tina Ashdown (South West Road Runners) - 1:35:59
1st V30 Male: - Micheal Sandiford (Fordy Runs) - 1:13:44
1st V30 Female - Tanya Batten (local runner) - 1:33:26
1st V40 Male - Matthew Wheeler (Fordy Runs) - 1:14:29
1st V40 Female - Caroline Arkless (No club listed) - 1:33:35
1st V50 Male - Jim McConnell (Taunton AC) - 1:19:32
1st V50 Female - Henrietta Drummond - (No club listed) 1:41:14
1st V60 Male - Martin Shoots (Minehead Running Club) - 01:25:59
1st V60 Female - Belinda Beake (Cheddar Running Club) - 2:01:56
1st V70 Male - Steve Crook (Chard Road Runners) - 1:58:11
1st V70 Female - Anne Harrison (Exmoor Running Together) - 2:06:08
There were 1780 finishers altogether - full results will be available soon on www.activesouthwest.co.uk.
Special mentions made by the organisers were Tom Addison-Wood, who finished 3rd overall, and Taunton 10k winner Tanya Batter, who was 1st V30 female.
They also mentioned Adrian Marshall, who placed 35th at 79-year-old and wheelchair athlete Samantha Gleeson did ‘superbly’, they said.
Those running included Poppy Chedzoy-Wilkins, who finished the race alongside her dad, Martin Wilkins, in memory of her friend Lauren Jackson. Poppy has raised more than £5,000 for Mind so far.
Tom Leaman, 27, a former County Gazette reporter, also ran during the event, he said: “The race was fun. I'm really glad it stayed dry, and it was lovely to have the support of other runners and people in the town centre at the finish.”
The organisers, Dan, Dave and Alex, said: “I think I speak on behalf of all of us when I say that we are extremely proud of the amount of positive feedback we have received following the event. It was a huge undertaking.
“We simply can’t thank enough the more than 200 people who gave up their time this weekend to make this happen. Without them, an event of this size would be impossible to put on.
“We saw first-hand everything that previous race director John Lewis and his team did for over three decades, and it's made us respect them even more.”
They added: “One of the best things to see was that the enthusiasm for the final finishers was the same as it was for the winners. The atmosphere in town was incredible all day, and we hope to continue John and his team's amazing legacy whilst building our own - Taunton Half Marathon is here to stay, and we're truly honoured and humbled to be the ones to deliver it for the foreseeable future.”
The event was sponsored by several businesses, with the headline sponsors being Porter Dodson, the headline sponsors being Somerset College, St Margaret’s Hospice, and other charity partners being Stand Against Violence, Somerset Counselling Centre, Exmoor Search and Rescue, Somerset Wildlife Trust and Somerset NHS.
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