In pictures: Northstowe Half and 5K is a sure-footed success

It was smiles all round as runners of all ages tackled the second Northstowe Half Marathon on Sunday, April 23).

This year’s event was titled The Northstowe Half Marathon and Be Prepared 5k and all profits from it will go to support the 1st Northstowe Scouts group, hence the name. The inaugural run in 2022 raised £1,872 to support children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing with the Fullscope 5k race.

The top three finishers in the half marathon among the men were Neil Tween, with a chip time of 1:21:36, Charlie Byers (1:22:53) and Robin Webb (1:24:12), while the fastest woman was Alison Stewart, who finished 10th overall with a chip time of 1:32:02, followed by Jessica Smith-Lamkin (1:37:10) and Ffion Daniel (1:38:27).

In the 5k, the overall winner and fastest man was Ashley Crawford (18:48), followed by Andrew Taylor (20:24) and Dougie Barber (22:28), while the first woman back was Heather Williams, who finished 10th overall in a time of 24:25. Gemma Coe (25:20) and Felicity Sewell (25:25) were the second and third-placed women respectively.

Marcin Lis, founder and managing director of Northstowe Running Festival Events, said: “It was really good, everything went nice and smoothly. Despite the forecast of some showers, the weather was perfect for running. It stayed dry over the course of the day and it was a lovely day — everyone enjoyed it. We had about 20 per cent more sign-ups compared to last year so it’s definitely going in the right direction.”

Marcin reveals that just over £800 has been raised so far, though there is still more to come in from some of the virtual runs. He thanked all the volunteers who gave their time and says the date for next year’s run will be announced soon.

For more information, visit northstowehalf.co.uk/.