THIS year's OX5 Run has so far raised £15,000 for the Oxford Children's Hospital and organisers are still hopeful that the final total will top £55,000.

More than 800 people pounded the pathways of Blenheim Palace three weeks ago to raise money for the hospital, which opened earlier this year.

Last year's event raised £55,000 for the hospital and it is hoped the final figure for 2007 will be even higher.

Out of the current £15,000 total collected, £10,000 has been raised by entry fees and a further £5,000 has come from sponsorship money collected by runners.

The head of community fundraising for Oxford Children's Hospital, Graham Brogden, said: "I would once again like to say a big thank you to everyone who joined in and took part in this year's OX5 event.

"It was once again a fantastic day and it was great to see so many people giving up their Sunday morning to take part.

"Now the hard part is done, I would like to encourage runners to chase up their sponsors and get their sponsorship money as soon as possible - preferably before the end of the month, so that we can get a final total and they can be eligible for a free gift."