A number of top athletes will be hoping the new course at Huntly Half Marathon treats them well on Sunday, as they compete for titles in the popular event. However, the race is still wide open, and the $30,000 merit and spot prize pool available should encourage all runners to try their luck.
Athletes to watch in the half marathon will be Tauranga's Ben Ruthe, who was a gutsy 4th at Rotorua Marathon after missing a month of training following a difficult first few weeks after the birth of his son. Ruthe won the 10k at Huntly in 2007, and the NZ Cross Country champion and 2008 Auckland Marathon winner certainly has the potential to take out the Huntly title. Auckland runners Jono Jackson (ACA) and Pakuranga's Sam Dobson will also be competing for the top spot, and could be pushing the 70 minute mark. Jackson was top U20 runner and 6th overall in the 2008 Huntly event, and will be looking to improve on that time. The men's winner will receive $750, with the potential of $250 time bonus for a time under 66 minutes.
Not one but two Stephen Smiths are also likely to be among the top half marathoners - one from Palmerston North and one from Hamilton. The former is a past Round the Bridges winner and a champion junior, when running for Frankton. However, the latter has been in strong form recently, winning the inaugural Hamilton City Hawks mountain running championships, among other successes, and is expected to be first Hawk across the line.
The women's race is relatively open also and with up to $1000 on the line in prize money for the winner it should make for a great event. Hamilton City Hawk Helen Rountree will be in with a real chance for a local win, but could face competition from Sarah Devoy (Auckland). Masters athletes Lesley Turner-Hall (Auckland) and Kirsten Milne (Kihikihi), who was 3rd woman at the 35k ‘Big O' Lake Okataina trail run recently, are also runners to watch.
While TV's Bill and Ben have not returned to Huntly for another milk-drinking 10k (as featured on ‘Pulp Sport' last year), the media will be well represented by Radio Sport's Nigel Yalden, who will be commentating on the race and also running in the 10k event accompanying the half.
The 10k race will again be a highlight, as a number of elite athletes choose to test themselves over the shorter distance. The main man to watch will be Paul Hamblyn, who was 4th behind Olympic medallist Nick Willis at the 2006 Commonwealth Games and has been NZ 1500m champion 3 years in a row. Rotorua's Steven O'Callaghan will also contest the 10k and can't be underestimated following his recent outstanding run for 2nd at Rotorua Marathon, where he was disappointed to fall in the finishing sprint against Scott Winton.
The Huntly Appliances Huntly Half Marathon is happens 24th May at Lake Hakanoa Domain, Huntly, and caters for all runners and walkers. Race H.Q. is at the Huntly Thistle soccer club rooms. Hamilton City Hawks are again the primary organizers of the race, which has been selected as the national championship course for 2010. So far 2,300 entries have been received, with regional Waikato towns such as Cambridge (75 entrants) particularly well represented. Race Director Graham Dudfield expects a large number of late entries and is hoping for fine weather.
