The Abingdon Marathon started at 9am at Tilsley Park, with a revised route for this year’s race. Runners went around Radley Lakes before following the Sustrans cycle route through the Abbey Grounds. It was a cool morning. Pictured are the leading runners going by the Millstream
The leading female runner at that stage, Emma Cowper, went on to win the women’s race.
Runners made their way along Abbey Close.
They then passed through the Abbey Gateway, where the Town Crier was ringing his bell and members of his family were also cheering.
In previous years, the route took runners past R&R and across the Market Place.
They continued along High Street rather than turning down East St Helen Street.
There were a lot of supporters along the High Street.
Near County Hall, a group of supporters from Mind were cheering on runners. The marathon raised around £20,000 for charities last year, and a similar amount is expected this year, with funds going to around 20 local charities.
Runners continued down West St Helen Street and along St Helen Wharf. The church bells were ringing for the Sunday service.
The route then headed out through the surrounding villages, with runners completing two circuits.
There were further changes to the return route through Abingdon, which avoided most of Dunmore Road. I was told by one Marshall that closing the road can be expensive, so the revised course made greater use of quieter roads and footpaths, offering a more scenic route while removing a road closure cost.
The runners followed the River Stert. The results on https://sites.chronotrack.com/event/94541/results show that Stephen Stuart Bumstead – 1158 – finishes in 3:35:45 but did not mention that he was pushing a double buggy.
The route continuing along Sellwood Road, where a young drummer encouraged runners with drumming and bashing of the cymbal.
Marshals were out in large numbers along the route, directing runners and helping to manage traffic. There must have been hundreds of marshals and organisers involved – making the event run smoothly.
The final stretch included some of the new cycle and pedestrian routes through the recent housing developments. This gave runners a more scenic route back towards Tilsley Park.
The first runner back at Tilsley Park was Matthew Lock from Witney. He finished in 2 hours, 28 minutes and 16 seconds, a couple of minutes ahead of the next runner.
Several drones could be seen overhead, with one tracking the runners as they ran their final lap of the track. Thanks to technology, the commentator was able to identify the incoming runners by name.
A total of 1,057 runners started the marathon. The commentator announced that 249 of those were running their first marathon. He also said it’s the 42nd running of the Abingdon Marathon. I see from https://sites.chronotrack.com/event/94541/results that 1,022 from 1,057 runners finished. That’s amazing! What dedication!
