On a beautiful, sunny Sunday morning thousands of runners, joggers and walkers lined up for the start of the 21st Hastings Half Marathon.
The atmosphere was electric as competitors waited for the crack of the starting gun and the beginning of a gruelling 13-mile slog.
Hastings and St Leonards residents did themselves proud, turning out in their hundreds to line the streets and offer shouts of encouragement all along the route.
The Hastings Half Marathon is no ordinary course. Its combination of flat road running and hilly heights makes it a test of tactics as well as physical endurance.
Only an hour after they had begun, the first of the runners was seen making his way back along the seafront to the finish.
Kenyan athlete Fred Mogaka successfully defended his title with a remarkable time of 1:04:10, closely followed by Malack Olemengera with a time of 1:04:47.
Despite these speedy finishes the race records of 61:37 (men) and 71:13 (women) remained unbroken.
As the clock ticked on past midday, hundreds more ran on shaky legs to the finish and a welcome cup of tea.
The first male and female runners across the line received prizes of £2,000 each, going down to £50 for the tenth male competitor to finish. Sponsors handed out prizes for other positions, including tenth woman.
This year’s half marathon attracted a record number of runners with more than 4,500 entrants and it was a similar story for the Manor Insurance Mini-Run for 11 to 16-year-olds, which reached capacity with 350 entrants.
Congratulations to siblings Simon and Lucy Baker who won the girls and boys categories in the mini-run.
Race director Eric Hardwick said:
"It was a great day and I am very proud of all those who took part. It’s always hard work, but very enjoyable."
The Hastings Half Marathon was organised by the Hastings Lions Club and supported by a huge range of sponsors and Hastings Borough Council. All the money raised will go towards charitable causes.
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This page last updated: 01/04/2005