The sun was shining this morning for thousands of runners completing the Manchester Half Marathon, an event which had over 11,000 registrations.

The North West’s biggest half marathon saw runners of all ages and abilities take on the 13.1-mile closed road route, starting and finishing near Old Trafford. The route saw a change to previous years as it cruised through the city centre for the very first time, giving runners the rare opportunity to have the city streets to themselves, with many achieving new personal best times thanks to the events famously fast and flat course.

Elite winners

Kris Jones won the elite men’s race with a time of 1:03:46, with James Tilley taking second place with a time of 1:07:12 and Tom Charles coming in third position at 1:07:25.

Women’s elite winner Mollie Williams crossed the finish line with a time of 1:13:29, with Leila Armoush taking second place with a time of 1:14:59 and Kirsty Longley coming in third position at 1:15:08.

 Elite wheelchair winners

David Sinclair won the elite men’s race with a time of 1:44:09.

This year the Manchester Half unveiled a ‘heroes’ theme, championing the many amazing people tackling the 13.1-mile distance, those who inspire others to run, plus the local heroes who do incredible things every day with little credit.

As part of the event, Manchester Half organisers assembled a superhero team made up of:

• The Superheroes of Sale a team of keen runners who sought to bring a bit of cheer to children and adults alike whilst out on their runs.
• Becca Broadbent who inspires women to get running through her running club and this year helped over 40 women complete the Manchester Half.
• Manchester Frontrunners the only LGBTQ+ running club based in Manchester, who welcome runners of any gender or sexuality with open arms as part of their goal to make running a sport that is inclusive to anyone and everyone.
• Chelsea Houghton who took up running in 2020 despite her struggles with a melanoma diagnosis in 2020, and now inspires others to get out and do the same.
• Rowan Ardill is the Running Mayor of Manchester, and the founder of Ramsbottom Running club and inspires others to use running to improve the mental wellbeing of his community.

In addition, thousands of spectators lining the route witnessed a plethora of runners dressed in hero costumes which was a site to behold, and at mile 9 runners were given a heroes welcome with a hero cheer squad and DJ truck blasting out motivational tune to send them in their way.

The much-loved Manchester Half Marathon attracts thousands of runners each year, with around half coming from outside Manchester and providing a welcome boost to the local economy. The Half is one of the biggest fundraising activities on the Manchester calendar, with this year’s runners raising nearly half a million in precious funds for charity including our Official Charity Partners; Alzheimer’s Society, Cancer Research UK, The Christie and ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, with the total still increasing.

Nick Rusling, CEO of Human Race who also took part in the event today said “Completing a half marathon is a massive achievement, and in my view there is no better place to do it than in Manchester. The community support alone makes this a fantastically welcoming event to be a part of, and combined with the flat course, it makes for an enjoyable run regardless of ability. All of the runners were heroes today with some having overcome great barriers, some running for their own personal heroes who were or are special to them, and some were simply their own heroes just for taking on the half marathon challenge. It’s been a privilege to join them today and share in their achievement. We hope to see them all back next year.”