With just a few metres of climbing in the entire route, the Hatfield 5 is quite possibly the flattest and fastest five-mile road race in the UK. Organised by Active Training World Events, this year's race on Sunday 26 November hosted the Hertfordshire 5 Mile Championships and attracted 730 runners to the Race HQ at the University of Hertfordshire College Lane Campus.

The race starts at The Forum at the University before heading along the pavements of College Lane and onto the Alban Way – a disused railway line and one of the most popular running routes in Hatfield and the St Albans area. The return features the super-flat and straight A414 footpath and the final mile is back along the Alban Way and into race HQ.

This year's women's race winner and the new Hertfordshire County Champion was Annabel Gummow (Herts Phoenix AC, 27:05) – 5:25 miling pace and fast enough to climb to fifth in the UK Rankings for 2023.

Gummow finished ninth overall and was two minutes clear of a great battle for the remaining podium places between Bryony Proctor (Kent AC, 29:05) and Herts silver medallist W50 Kate Rennie (Dacorum & Tring AC, 29:06). The top five ladies were under 30 minutes, including Charlotte Bishop (Basildon AC, 29:18) and Herts Champs bronze medal winner Lucy Barnes (Harlow Run Tri, 29:26).

The men's race didn't make the same impact on the fastest times this year but there was a superb tactical race at the front with 20 seconds covering the top six. Jude Bell (Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers, 25:44) was strongest in the finishing straight to take the race win and Hertfordshire title from Adam Edgeworth (Dacorum & Tring AC, 25:47) and Oliver Hill (Watford Joggers, 26:00). The top three claimed all three Herts Champs individual medals.

Just a second later there was a tremendous sprint between M45 Sullivan Smith (Cambridge & Coleridge AC, 26:01), M40 Martin Amos (Huntingdonshire AC, 26:01) and Adam Wilson (Bristol & West AC, 26:04).

Pictured above we see #364 Chrissie Thomas (Stevenage Striders, 45:55), #527 Andy Lee-Savage (Pen Pacers, 47:39) and #275 Thippawan Rashleigh (Garden City Runners, 46:20) enjoying the early stages of the race.

Full results are available via the runABC South race listing here.

Photo courtesy Mark Easton for ATW Events