Steyning Athletic Club: Steyning Stinger Marathon & Half Marathon

Sunday 3rd March, 2019, was the 18th edition of the event hosted by Steyning Athletic Club.

This year’s event welcomed 600 runners to Steyning. They tackled the demanding course (which criss-crosses the South Downs between Steyning, Storrington, Findon, Cissbury and Lancing) through rain, fog and 40mph winds.

Race Organiser, Steve Jones, said: 'This event would not have been possible without the 100+ volunteers from both the club and the local community that helped over the weekend, alongside the support from the local land owners, farmers and St John Ambulance. A huge thank you to everyone involved. Particular praise this year has to go to the marshals out on the course braving the worst of Storm Freya… It was great to see many familiar faces returning to take part and still smiling at the finish.'

Competitors have been posting their race photos and comments on Instagram using #steyningstinger.
'Another great race! Brutal and brilliant! Big respect to all the marshals out there in all of that wind and rain!' commented @allterraintim.

'Pretty tough conditions with lots of rain and wind making it a real slog but super good fun! Just over 1000m of climb. Massive thanks to @steyningathleticclub1951 and all the marshals who braved the awful weather to keep runners safe, watered and fed!' commented @gd_runs.

Winners of the Marathon (26.2 miles) were Paul Sargent from Burgess Hill Runners (first male) with a time of 3h 27m 01s; and Cat Simpson from Fulham RC (first female) with a time of 3h 56 m 03s.