On Sunday, over 20,000 runners took part in the Great Manchester Run, they were running alongside a strong elite field and with the support of thousands of volunteers and spectators.

It was a fantastic running spectacular for runners in the north of England, but it was a Scottish lass who made the headlines thanks to a great day at the office for Eilish McColgan who, despite finishing second to Kenyan powerhouse Hellen Obiri, smashed Paula Radcliffe’s longstanding British 10K record on the road, by two seconds.

Obiri’s winning time of 30:15 and McColgan’s second place time of 30:19: were also the second and third fastest of all time in a women's only race. Kenyan Ruth Chepngetich took third place in 30:29

The Dundee Hawkhill Harrier and triple Olympian commented: “After coming so close to the British record in London I’m so happy to have broken it here today. 33s faster than last year and second behind the incredible Hellen Obiri! Over the moon and excited for track season.

"We went off super-fast but I wanted to keep something for the final stages and I’m glad I did. Thank you for all the support on the course, it was so incredible, I love running in Manchester."

In the Men’s race, Jake Robertson of New Zealand took first place in 28:06, ahead of Australian runner Jack Rayner in second in 28:16 and Spain’s Antonio Abadia in third in 28:21. The first British male was Abdulqani Sharif (Liverpool Harriers) who was 5th in 28:29 - a PB by nearly two and a half minutes (his previous best was 30:57 in 2018)!

The 20th Great Manchester Run will take place on Sunday 21 May 2023 and organisers are currently offering an early bird discount on entry for both distances. For more information visit the Great Run website.

Image: Great Run Company