Winchester half marathon: Runners raise thousands for charity

On Sunday, the annual Winchester half-marathon took place.

The event, as organised by Challenging Events saw a ribbon of almost a thousand runners burst through the streets of Winchester, with the hopes of achieving personal bests and raising cash for charity.

The half-marathon started at 9 am, the route began at the Guildhall before going past many of Winchester’s best-known landmarks such as St Catherine’s Hill and Winchester Cathedral.

Since the race started, numerous charities have been supported including Naomi House & Jack’s Place. The race started “back in 2016” and has in that time raised “about £50,000” for charities, said Kelly Wickens, the Event Director for Challenging Events.

“It’s my first ever race, I’d only ever done two park runs and wanted to challenge myself” Brittany Claxton, a local teacher said.

Tom Hooker, a former Winchester student, said: “It’s so rewarding and it was great organisation, to have so many supporters here as well, people clapping at each part of it, it’s something I’d definitely do again, but not right now”

A pair of experienced runners, said: “We were going for completing, we are doing a marathon next month, so we’re using this as a training run.”

Following a slump in attendance and participation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is expected that the 800 runners tally from this year’s event will serve as a good benchmark for future Winchester Half-Marathons.