On Saturday 8 October 2014, we had around 250 runners in total, with 25 running in the full 2014 Suva Marathon. We hope to double that number next year, and bring in more runners from overseas to race the streets of our great capital.” said Race Director, Chris Daniel.
“It was great to see so many keen runners join the event. We want to start work now to make next year’s marathon even bigger!”
Ravnil Kumar of the Jet Runners from Nadi won the inaugural Suva Marathon completing the 42km course in a time of 3hrs 22mins and 7secs, setting the benchmark for future competitors. William Simpson finished second with a time of 3:32.25, and Jerome Pons third in 3:59.55.
The only female runner in the full marathon was Anna Cowley who finished in a time of 5:47.31.
Francis Chung, competing in a wheelchair finished in a time of 5:07.22.
“It’s hard to imagine how hard it actually is to run 42km. The endurance and fitness of these athletes is simply amazing. Next year Suva runners will have to step up to compete with the runners from Nadi and Lautoka who set the standard this time!”
Avikash Lal, also from the Nadi Jet Runners, won the male half marathon in a time of 1:23.53. The female half marathon was won by Angela Mahoney from Suva in 1:48.19, and Sainimili Navalu completed the wheelchair half marathon in 3:50.48.
The team marathon event brought a lot of colour and competitiveness to the day with a great turn out. Westpac and the army cadets both did their organisations proud with a big turnout of runners