Austrlaian Fijian Ben Ashkettle has set a new full marathon course record with a time of 2hrs 37min during the Island Chill Suva Marathon at Albert Park yesterday.
Winning and breaking the course record in his first local marathon made his win so special.
Ashkettle knew the race would be very competitive and challenging.
“It feels great and definitely got a lot of help from our supporters and I could not have done it without all that support. So yes, it is much appreciated,”Ashkettle said.
According to him, it was his first time to run a marathon in Fiji and also a very emotional one.
“My mother attended Suva Grammar School and our course led us past the school, which was quite an emotional moment for me running past it knowing that this was the school she went to.
Askettle previously ran in other countries America (Houston, Texas), Austria (Viena) and Australia (Townsville, Queensland).
The 28-year-old said he ran with a more conservative approach because of the heat.
It was something that he was not accustomed to compared with the weather in Melbourne, Australia, where he resides.
