On your marks, get set, go!

The starting pistol was fired on the return of Oxford’s half-marathon which saw nearly 2,000 people take to the streets yesterday, many for a good cause.

The overall winner was 26-year-old James Bellward, from Crawley, who ran the route around the city in one hour, 11 minutes and three seconds.

So his is now the record to beat for the new Oxford Half-Marathon.

He said: “It was hard work but brilliant. The atmosphere coming into the stadium was great.

“The course was flat and fast. Probably the fastest course I have done so far.”

Probably the most famous runner at yesterday’s marathon was twice-Olympian Liz Yelling, who won the women’s race in one hour, 14 minutes and 40 seconds. She said: “It was great. It was nice to go through the town. As far as half-marathons go, it’s a great route and it has potential for growth.”

Runners set off from the Kassam Stadium in Grenoble Road at 9.45am, 15 minutes later than planned.

Starting and finishing at the Kassam Stadium, the route wound its way around the city, through the centre of Oxford and past the Cowley Mini Plant, which was the event’s main sponsor.

It was partnered with East Oxford hospice Helen & Douglas House and is expected to make more than £10,000 for them. Even the gaping hole which opened up in Old Road last week couldn’t stop the race from being held as planned.

Director Andy Heyes said: “It was brilliant. It has been challenging to organise and it’s a great feeling to see the runners line up.

“To have nearly 2,000 runners is great, considering it only had the official go-ahead less than four months ago.”

He added that the delayed start was due to traffic congestion to the east of the city. He said: “We had about 20 phone calls from people delayed but we could not delay it any more than 15 minutes.”

Organisers aim to attract 10,000 people to the half-marathon by 2012, making it Oxford’s biggest sporting fixture.

Bystander Neil Whitton, 35, from Greater Leys, said: “I think it’s good Oxford has a half-marathon. The overall event is a good idea and it looks like there is a good turn-out.”

This was not the first time the city has played host to a half-marathon, which is 13.1 miles long. Between 1988 and 1993 Oxford’s Rotary clubs organised races attracting 1,000 to 3,000 runners.

Oxford City Council leader Bob Price not only started the race but joined runners by taking part.

He said: “It’s a shame that there has not been a half-marathon in Oxford for some time. It is the perfect location for it.”

James Bellward – 1hr 11m 03s John Holt – 1hr 12m 01s Darrell Bellinger – 1hr 13m 06s Michael Osborne – 1hr 13m 09s Liz Yelling – 1hr 14m 40s