Woodstock Harriers' Greg Dell was the toast of Oxfordshire, as he led home the local contingent in the Flora London Marathon on Sunday.

Woodstock Harriers Greg Dell and Jerry Greeves

Dell produced a magnificent performance as he crossed the line 113th overall out of more than 20,000 finishers, in 2hrs 37mins 41secs.

Close behind him was Jerry Greeves, who finished 2.37.44 for 114th place - the pair running neck-and-neck throughout the race.

Headington Roadrunners' Martin Gainsborough missed out on his personal best for the marathon by 50 seconds, recording 2.37.55 for 116th place.

Woodstock veteran Mike Shipway was on target to win the Vet 60 category, but 'hit the wall' five miles from home to finish 14th in his age group.

His time of 3.18.22 was respectable enough, but well below his personal best - which would have won him the title.

There were excellent performances from other local runners.

Witney Roadrunner Mike Baillie recordied a new personal best of 2.47.29 to finish 288th, while teammate Natasha Rhymes did likewise in the women's race, finishing 607th in 3.42.19.

But it wasn't all good news, and there was considerable heartache for some.

Cherwell Runners' veteran Pete Hart was on course for a sub-five hour time, which would have qualified him for the Comrades Marathon later this year.

But he was felled at the 12-mile stage by a pedestrian with a bicycle, who had decided to cross the course. The cyclist brought Hart, and several other runners crashing to the ground.

After lengthy treatment to his right calf, Hart dusted himself down to finish the race in 5.21.00.

Banbury Harrier Simon Pritchard was one of many to suffer in the heat of the day, failing to finish after collapsing through exhaustion three miles from the end and being taken to hospital.