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Thousands take part in Brighton Half Marathon

Bob Dale
BBC News, South East
Alison Ferns/BBC Hundreds of runners setting off in the Brighton Half Marathon.Alison Ferns/BBC
About 10,000 runners are taking part in the Brighton seafront event

More than 10,000 runners have taken part in the 35th Brighton Half Marathon, with tens of thousands of spectators lining the route.

The event kicked off at about 09:30 GMT at Hove Lawns, where it also ended.

The race followed its usual route, despite demolition work on the Royal Albion Hotel which led to the seafront road being closed for a week.

Comedian and actor Joe Wilkinson was the official race starter, before joining in to raise money for the charity Sussex Beacon.

Chris Ward, Labour MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, also ran for the same cause.

The charity provides specialist care and support for people living with HIV.

Some bus routes were diverted, with information available on the Brighton and Hove Buses website.

Road closures were also in place until 14:00 GMT.

BBC Radio Sussex's Alison Ferns, reporting from the starting line, said: "They couldn't have ordered better weather.

"The sky is blue, people are smiling, in such good spirits."

BBC/ALISON FERNS Seyfu Jamaal crossing the finishing line of the Brighton Half Marathon.BBC/ALISON FERNS
The men's race was won by Seyfu Jamaal

Seyfu Jamaal won the men's race in a course record time of 64 minutes and 30 seconds.

The former refugee from Ethiopia is fasting for Ramadan, so could not eat or drink on the course.

Alison Ferns/BBC Christa Cain crossing the finishing line of the Brighton Half Marathon.Alison Ferns/BBC
Christa Cain won the women's event

The women's race was won by Christa Cain in 76 minutes and 19 seconds.

And the wheelchair race was won by Josh Hickinbottom in 57 minutes and 24 seconds.

Alison Ferns/BBC The winners of the men's and women's Brighton Half Marathon event stand with their trophies in front of a pale blue plastic sheet with the sponsors' names across it.Alison Ferns/BBC
Seyfu Jamaal and Christa Cain were presented with trophies after coming in first

Former Brighton & Hove Albion player Steve Sidwell also ran the race as part of his preparations for the London Marathon in April.

He said: "My wife's done the Brighton Marathon twice. I've watched her do it so it's time for me to do it.

"I'll be looking for around 1:40, 1:50. I can't wait to start, but I can't wait to finish, either."

Family handout A woman and a man in running gear. There is a runner behind them taking a photo and there is a crowd behind them. Family handout
Carmen Somerset and Daniel Creed from Hove will be running as newly-weds

Other runners included Carmen Somerset and Daniel Creed, who took part as newly-weds after getting married on Saturday.

Also running was Chris Terrill, who inadvertently set a new world record in the 2024 Brighton Marathon, when he ran it on crutches after a hip replacement operation.

The race was marshalled by 450 volunteers.

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