The St Albans Half Marathon scooped a silver medal at the star-studded National Running Awards, surpassing 5,000 other participants.

Sat alongside Olympic legend Dame Kelly Holmes, and representatives from major sporting brands Adidas and Nike, St Albans Half Marathon director Katie Foweraker claimed a silver award for Best Half Marathon.

The annual Running Awards event, which took place on April 20, is one of the most prestigious in national sport. This year saw a surge in nominations and over 100,000 votes cast.

After the win, Katie said: “We hope that this award brings more runners to St Albans and helps St Albans Half Marathon to raise even more money for local charities and organisations. We are absolutely blown away by this award.

“We would like to thank everyone who voted, as well as everyone who supports the event. We are a community event and pride ourselves on offering something for everyone, whether that’s the challenge of a half marathon or walking half marathon, or the 5K and fun run for those just starting out.

“In the past few years we have really tried to grow and progress the event, involving more local businesses and making it more family friendly.”

The event is now in its 36th year and was founded in 1982 by local businessman, Phil Gibson, who wanted to raise money for a hospital scanner following the death of his mother from breast cancer. The first ever race was called the Mini Marathon and was open to runners, joggers and walkers. It attracted 1,300 competitors each paying £1 entry fee receiving a certificate on completion.

If you want to take part in this year’s event on Sunday June 11, visit www.stalbanshalfmarathon.co.uk