April 2025: Performance round up
With tens of thousands of people taking to the streets of both London and Manchester at the weekend to complete the marathon distance to finish April’s athletics action strong, let’s look back at some highlights from April in our round up. From new British records to team camaraderie at the Road Relays, April has been full of excitement.
Marathon recap
36,000 people pounded the streets of Manchester for the 2025 Manchester Marathon, which this year played host to the England Marathon Championships. The men’s championship was won by Matt Sharp (Ryde Harriers) in 2:17:22, whilst the women’s race was led home by Tessa McCormick (Vale Royal AC) in 2:34:53.
In London, Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa set a new world record for a women’s only field with 2:15:50. In the same race, Rose Harvey (Clapham Chasers) was the first English athlete across the line in ninth place with a time of 2:25:01; her second fastest ever marathon time. Mahamed Mahamed (Southampton, Idris Hamud) also finished ninth in the men’s race in 2:08:52 as the first British man to cross the iconic finish line.
A record-breaking month
Earlier in the month, Innes Fitzgerald (Exeter, Gavin Pavey) won the elite women’s race at the Bristol Track Club 5k. With her time of 15:08, she broke the European U20 5k record. This adds to the European U20 indoor 3000m record that she set earlier this year.
At the Oklahoma Throws Series, Lawrence Okoye (Croydon, Zane Duquemin) joined the 70m club with a new PB of 70.76m. In doing so, he broke his own discus throw national record set nearly 13 years ago.
Teamwork at the National Road Relay Championships
The Spring edition of the National Road Relays always brings excitement as clubs battle for the national titles and this year was no different! In the men’s race, Will Battershill (Luke Gunn) ran the second fastest leg of the day in a time of 14:30 to secure the top spot for Bristol & West AC. In the women’s event, Philippa Bowden set Aldershot Farnham & District AC off on a strong foot with the second fastest time of the day (16:53), which ultimately helped them to secure the title.