Hundreds of athletes and elite runners took to the track at Tameside Cycle Circuit for Manchester’s first-ever SportsShoes.com Podium 5K graded race series event.
The event, held on Sunday, August 16, saw 281 runners compete at the Ashton-under-Lyne circuit in a series of 5K and mile races.
Organised by online running retailer SportsShoes.com in partnership with Nike, the inaugural SportsShoes Podium MCR event was hosted by Active Tameside.
Among the elite field was Team GB athlete James West, who competed in the 5,000m at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham just days before taking part in the Tameside race.
West won the elite men’s 5K in a time of 13 minutes and 49 seconds, finishing just one second ahead of Australian former professional cyclist Jimmy Whelan.
Four-time British 1,500m champion Neil Gourley also competed, having won silver in the 1,500m at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing last year.
Gourley finished second in the elite men’s mile in 4:18.4, with Tom Dodd taking first place in 4:17.6.
The elite women’s 5K was won by Almi Nerurkar in 15:54 during her first road race of the year. Nerurkar finished fifth in the 5,000m at this year’s UK Athletics Championships in June.
Tilly Simpson finished second in 16:06.
The elite women’s mile was won by European Cross Country bronze medallist Holly Dixon in 4:37, with Hollie Parker taking second in 4:46.
SportsShoes Podium race coordinator Mia France described the event as a “huge success”.
She said Tameside Cycle Circuit had provided “the perfect track for the running community”, resulting in fast races and close finishes.
The SportsShoes Podium series has been running record-breaking 5K events across the UK since 2023, attracting thousands of athletes from the UK and overseas.
Previous events have featured Olympians including Emile Cairess, Beth Potter, Alex Yee and Narve Nordas.
Dan Higgins, head of health and social outcomes at Active Tameside, said hosting the event had been a chance to showcase the facility while bringing a major sporting event to the borough.
He said events such as Podium “bring people together, create a real buzz locally and demonstrate that movement can be enjoyed by everyone, regardless of age or ability.”
He added that Active Tameside hoped the event would encourage more people across the local community to become active.