JULIAN RENDALL of Tonbridge AC enjoyed an historic victory in the centennial of the original Hastings Marathon, first held on December 16, 1908.

The Hastings Lions Club promoted the event on Sunday to commemorate the first organised race of its kind.

The route of the original race had been researched and was followed as far as possible with the start and finish outside the original Town Hall (now the Priory Meadow shopping centre).

The winner in 1908 on the 25-mile course through the East Sussex countryside was William T Clarke of Sefton Harriers in 2hr 37min 16.8sec.

Rendall (2:36.31) dispensed with the obligatory covered shoulders and knee length drawers of the 41 competitors in 1908 to complete the 26 miles 385 yards 45 seconds faster than the winner of the original event.

Leading local athletes among the 1,200 finishers were the women’s winner Annabelle Stearns (3:04.20) of Gravesend Road Runners, Ed Peltor (41st, 3:07.18) of Tunbridge Wells Harriers and Steve Chivers (194th,(3:28.20) of Paddock Wood AC.