TWO hundred and thirty one runners competed in the March Weston Prom Run.

TWO hundred and thirty one runners competed in the March Weston Prom Run.

The conditions were cool with a strong westerly wind, but this did not put the runners off and some excellent times were recorded.

The winning time of 24.30, set by Mikael Ekvall from Sweden is a time not seen for many years of the race. Ekvall is a European Under-23 international competitor. This was the second month that the race has attracted an elite international athlete with Jo Pavey having run in February.

Also running was Tobias Hinchclife in his full rhino outfit. Tobias is running the London Marathon for ‘Save the Rhino’ and as a member of Weston AC was using the race to see how the outfit feels in race conditions.

He said afterwards: “I could just about cope with the 12 kilo weight of the outfit, but even on a cool March night the temperature inside was high, so I am a bit concerned what it might be like when running in April.

To donate to Tobias, visit www.virginmoneygiving.com/tobias

The first three men were: Mikael Ekvall (Stromstadd Loparklubb) 24.30; Matt Ellis (Westbury Harriers) 26.08; Ben Morley (GWR) 26.17. Ladies: Sophie Voller (Westbury Harriers) 30.23; Tamsin Chick (Westbury Harriers) 32.15; Aileen Brown (GWR) 33.39.

This was the seventh race of a nine race series. They are held each month from September to May on the third Thursday at 7.30pm. The race is five miles long and involves four lengths of the Weston promenade. Full details can be seen at www.westonac.co.uk