Where London
When July 1, 2007
First Man Stefano Baldini 29:27
First Woman Hilda Kibet 32:34
Last Finisher 2:15:00
No. of Finishers 22,000
The route of the British 10K reads like a must-visit list of London’s most famous tourist attractions: after the start in Piccadilly, runners headed through Trafalgar Square and down onto Victoria Embankment towards the City of London.
A few twists and turns near Tower Bridge brought them back along the Thames past St Paul’s Cathedral and along the river to Westminster for a finish on the Mall.
With more than 20,000 runners taking part in this year’s race, it was no surprise that Olympic Marathon Champion Stefano Baldini had won before many participants had even crossed the start line.
Apart from the Flora London Marathon, the British 10K offers the only opportunity to race around London’s major sights, and as a result has never struggled to attract runners – or critics.
Various aspects of the organisation – such as chaotic baggage storage, as well as a lack of timing chips, invisible kilometre markers and disorganised pen times at the start – irked many runners, who expected more for their £29.50 race fee.
The race attracts praise too though: the crowd support generates a wonderful atmosphere and at this year’s race, just a week after two major terror threats in the capital, there was a great sense of spirit and camaraderie.
