Northumberland County Council - Thousands of runners and spectators flock to Kielder Reservoir

Runners at the start of the Kielder Marathon 10km event

Thousands of runners and spectators flock to Kielder Reservoir

07 Oct 2023 ARCHIVED (over 3 months old) - view latest news

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Thousands of runners and spectators flock to Kielder Reservoir as the 13th Active Northumberland Kielder Marathon weekend gets under way.

More than 1000 runners and cyclists took part in the first day of races on this 13th year of Britain’s most beautiful marathon making it the highest participated event since 2019.

The Gravel Duathlon (formerly known as the Run Bike Run), which breaks the marathon route down into three phases, and the Kielder 10k, were the highlights of the day, while crowds and runners will return on Sunday for the Marathon and Half Marathon, as well as Junior races.

Michael Mason of the Durham Triathlon Club was the first individual through the Run Bike Run and he did it in 2h 22m 31s
The first female individual in the Run Bike Run was Ronnie Edwards in 2h 47m 06s
The team event was won by Too Fast Tofu-rious who completed it in 2h 28m 40s
In the 10K event, Liam Taylor from Sunderland Harriers was the first male finisher, crossing the finish line in 34m 31s.
The winning female was Georgia Campbell from, with a time of 41m 37s in the 10k.

The Active Northumberland Kielder Marathon weekend is delivered by Events of the North in conjunction with Northumbrian Water, Active Northumberland, Northumberland County Council and Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.

Steve Cram of Events of the North comments: “We’ve had a great first day at the Active Northumberland Kielder Marathon weekend, despite some autumnal weather. There was some excellent racing in the always popular 10K and the new set up for the duathlon worked really well, giving better opportunities for spectators to follow the action.”

Northumberland County Council Ceremonial Head Cllr Catherine Seymour said: " It's been an exciting first day with participants taking part in 10K and duathlon races.

"Not only is it great to see so many people passionate about running and cycling but having their friends and family coming to cheer them on and discover such a beautiful corner of our county."

David Hall, Head of Commercial Strategy and Transformation at Northumbrian Water, said: “What an incredible start to the weekend of the Active Northumberland Kielder Marathon. Poor weather hasn’t dampened anybody’s spirit and the atmosphere has been buzzing all day”

“But we’re only half way through this magnificent weekend, we are already excited and looking forward to a thrilling day tomorrow and, like all the spectators we can’t wait for the main event, the Marathon itself, to get under way”

Race information

Male 10k