They have been running from the city to the sea for a decade in the Swansea University Swansea Half Marathon. The 10th-anniversary edition was run on Sunday 9 June 2024 with a record 3,831 finishers in the flagship half marathon and fast winning times by defending champion Omar Ahmed and a delighted event ambassador Emily Marchant (pictured above).

A new Swansea City 5 Miler has been introduced to broaden the appeal of this event and with 116 finishers in 1:38:38, the objective was achieved. The fastest runners were Ben Williams (27:41) and 15-year-old Chloe Hartley-Green (34:55) – both of Swansea Harriers.

Regarding the newly introduced race, the Managing Director of Front Runner Events, David Martin-Jewell, said: “We were excited to have staged our first five-mile race along with the Freedom Family Fun Run. These additional events have helped us create a festival of running for all abilities and made it a truly historic day for all."

With almost 4,000 starters the half marathon was easily the biggest event to date. Omar Ahmed (Birchfield Harriers, 1:03:02) resisted all challenges as he missed his course record by nine seconds to retain his title. He was joined on the podium by Welshman Dewi Griffiths (Swansea Harriers, 1;03:41) and Dean Williamson (Colchester Harriers, 1:07:55).

Emily Marchant (Swansea Harriers, 1:17:42) was a comfortable women's champion from her clubmate Sioned Howells (1:19:47) and Exmouth Harriers' Alice Kelly (1:19:50). To evidence the PB potential of this super-slick course there were 250 runners inside 90 minutes on the loop of Swansea Bay to Mumbles and back.

Rugby legend Ryan Jones, MBE was the official starter and said: “It was incredible to watch all the participants taking on their own challenge in this milestone event. It is always humbling to see people of every ability reach such incredible feats of achievement. I am proud to be supporting the half marathon and “making strides for mental health” with Swansea University, which saw almost 200 runners join #TeamSwansea.”

Super Early Bird entries are already available for next year's event on Sunday 8 June 2025.

For full results and previous event reports visit the runABC South race listing here.

Image courtesy Emma Martin-Jewell, Front Runner Events