Scots win caps another successful Great Scottish Run weekend

Scottish runner Callum Hawkins celebrates as he crosses the finishing line to win. Picture: PA

The 24-year-old finished second behind Moses Kipsiro in last year’s event but the Scot turned the tables to end his 2016 on a major high with a great display on the streets of Glasgow, running the second fastest Great British half marathon in history and breaking the Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run course record.

Hawkins – who broke his 5k, 10k and ten-mile PBs during the race - clocked 60.24 ahead of Kipsiro in 60.54 and Joel Kimutai in 61.34 as he became the first Scot, and the first Briton since 1993 to win the half marathon on a weekend where more than 30,000 people took part in a range of events around the city.

On a day of records, Betsy Saina was first female over the line in 67.22 – the fastest time in Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run history - well ahead of Helah Kiprop and Doris Changeiywo who clocked 68.52 and 71.34 respectively.

Runners in the half marathon take off from George Square, Glasgow in the 2016 Great Scottish Run. Picture: Hemedia

The Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run started on Friday, September 30 with 3,500 pupils from across Glasgow taking part in a 1.5k fun run at the Schools Challenge in Glasgow Green.

This was followed by ‘Super Saturday’ on October 1st, with the popular event attracting more than 3,000 participants to a range of family and children’s runs including the Toddler Dash involving 300 little ones (100 metres), Junior Run (2.5km) and Family Mile, all starting and finishing in George Square.

Everything you need to know about the Great Scottish Run

Returning for 2016 was the mascot race, with mascots from across Scotland going head to head in a 100m dash for glory. Kami the Bear claimed victory, whisking the coveted title of Scotland’s fastest mascot away from 2015 winner, FARE Bear.

To round off a fantastic weekend of running, an incredible 22,000 people took to the streets of Glasgow today for the 10k and half marathon, starting at George Square and crossing the finish line at Glasgow Green.

Jonathan Hopkins was the first man over the line in the 10k, clocking 30.21 ahead of Ben Stevenson, who was second with 30.38. Ryan Thomson finished third clicking 31.08.

In the women’s race, Josephine Moultrie was first in 34.19, seven seconds ahead of Jenny Bannerman who clocked 35.26, while Louise Mercer was third in 35.39.

In the men’s wheelchair race, Patrick Monaghan was first over the line in 26.19, overtaking Mark Telford in the final straight, who was one second behind in 26.20. Sam Kolek was a distant third in 30.13.

Mark Hollinshead, group chief executive of event organisers The Great Run Company, said: “The Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run is firmly established as one of the UK’s biggest mass participation sporting events, bringing world-class athletes to Glasgow, and ordinary runners from far and wide.

“It was a privilege to witness Callum Hawkins running the fastest half marathon in Scottish history, on home soil.

“The atmosphere on the streets of the city has been superb, as ever, and we can’t wait to welcome everyone back next year.”

Philip Grant Chair, Scottish Executive Committee Lloyds Banking Group said: “We were once again delighted to support the Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run. The whole weekend has been a massive success.

“We would like to say a special thank you to those running for our Charity of the Year, BBC Children in Need and many other worthy charities. It was great to see so many of you cross the finish line with smiles still on their faces.”

Councillor Archie Graham OBE, Depute Leader of Glasgow City Council and Chair of Glasgow Life, said: “The Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run is always a fantastic weekend of events and this year certainly didn’t disappoint! From the thousands of runners to the supportive spectators, every aspect of the weekend was just brilliant.

“Glasgow is very proud to host the Great Scottish Run, and it’s events like this which helped us secure our top five spot in the world’s greatest sporting cities.

“It was great to present the awards to our winners today. To see all the hard work and effort pay off on the day is really special.”

• Entries are already open for next year’s Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run – for more information, visit greatscottishrun.com

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