Run Norwich 2025's Podium Contenders

With last year’s Run Norwich seeing both the male and the female course records broken, 2025’s special anniversary of the event will need some seriously impressive runs to displace the jaw-dropping times set by Jonathan Escalante-Phillips and Holly Archer just under twelve months ago.

WOMENS

Whilst Mr Escalante-Phillips will be absent from this year’s starting roster, GB athlete Holly Archer (Bib No. 1) will make her return to Norfolk this weekend, as she looks to fend off local competition in order to retain the Women’s Run Norwich crown for the second year running.

This year, the Cambridge & Coleridge athlete has twice broken the 10k course-record time she set at RN24, recording a 34:10 at the Little Bromley 10k and a 34:12 back in Norfolk, in local race the Valentines 10k.

Some of Archer’s closest contenders look to be local runners Ellie Grubb (Bib No. 6) and Mabel Beckett (Bib No. 3), both of whom have multiple Run Norwich podium finishes to their names. This year, Ellie Grubb has a sub-36 minute 10k, whilst Mabel Beckett has ran a sub-37, positioning them both strongly for a likely place in the top three.

Other notable local names that will be eyeing up a podium spot are Rebecca Moore (Bure Valley Harriers), Kate Murrell (Norwich Road Runners) and Jo Andrews (Bungay Black Dogs).

Moore (Bib No. 138) had a particularly impressive runout in the Valencia 10k in January, recording a 36.38 chip time.

There was also an impressive run for Murell (Bib No. 150) earlier this year, as she clocked a 37.45 in the Valentines 10k.

Also running strongly in 2025, Andrews (Bib No. 8) has a 37.15 to her name, recorded on the notoriously tough Trowse 10k.

Ones to keep an eye on: Julliette Watkinson, Bib No. 165, Wymondham AC, 38.21 in 2025, Cat Cummings, Bib No. 10, CONAC, 38.47 in 2025

MENS

The contenders for the 2025 Men’s podium remain an exciting unknown. As previously mentioned, this year there is no Jonathan Escalante-Phillips, as well as previous winners Logan Smith and Nick Earl.

What we’re left with is a fresh line-up of names, new to the Run Norwich scene, each eager to carve out their place in the history books as part of the event’s tenth anniversary.

Oluwatosin Adedej (Bib No. 50) of Newham & Essex Beagles boasts the quickest 10k time in this 2025’s roster, with a time of 30:14 recorded in a race earlier this year. The Nigerian will be eyeing up a first appearance on the Run Norwich podium and will surely have his eyes set on first place and the silverware. If Adedej was to replicate his personal best for this year, or even slightly slower, he would also break the course record set last year (Jonathan Escalante-Phillips, 30:41).

Whilst the women’s race seems to suggest a clear favourite, the men’s event seems to demonstrate a much closer field, with Marshall Smith (Bib No. 56) of Ashford AC recording a impressive 30:24 at the tail-end of last year. Whilst 2025 has seen the Kent-based athlete focus more on his 10-mile and half-marathon distances, he will still fancy his chances of crossing the finish line in first place.

This year, the local challengers come in the form of William Mahoney (Bib No. 9), Danny Adams (Bib No. 7) and Harry Allcock (Bib No. 27), all of whom run for CONAC.

No stranger to a top-10 Run Norwich finish, Mahoney will be looking to go one better than his fifth-placed finish last year, in which he recorded an impressive 31:50. This year, he’s hit new highs in the 10k distance, making a statement with a personal best time of 31 minutes flat in the Battersea Park 10k.

21-year-old Danny Adams will also be looking to stake a claim on this years podium. After a third-place finish in 2022, the CONAC athlete will be looking to repeat this feat, and is well in the mix to do so, after a year which has seen him record a 31.41 over 10k distance, as well as a statement 14:59 over 5k.

Adams’ club-mate Harry Allcock will also be looking to make a mark – the local runner has this year recorded a 31.58 10k, which will definitely put him in and around the mix for a podium finish. Running from 5k up to half-marathon distance this year will mean the CONAC athlete has got plenty of running under his belt this year, and will most likely be fit and firing ahead of Sunday’s race.

Ones to keep an eye on: Chris Darling, Bib No. 49, Cambridge & Coleridge AC, 32.27 in 2024, James Senior, Bib No. 4, CONAC, 32.28 in 2024

As a reminder, the main top 3 prizes are allocated on gun time.

Official results listings will be ranked by chip time, with age category prizes allocated this way.

Click here to see the course records.