It was an incredibly busy weekend for St Albans Striders, with the 2026 marathon season kicking off in style with the Brighton, Paris and Boston (UK) marathons. 

There were lots of excellent performances at the Brighton Marathon, an undulating course finishing on the famous Brighton seafront. Josh Snowden was the first Strider home, coming 51st overall and finishing in an impressive 2.48.58. 

There were extremely strong performances across the field, including Graham Jack (3.27.05), Seb Jacobs (3.40.41), James Cameron (3.43.27), Felix Wieberneit (3.52.14), Jevon Langridge (3.57.18), George Clarke  (4.09.16), Richard Olney (4.34.42), and Jay Wheeler (4.44.45). 

Alongside the traditional Brighton Marathon, Gavin Shurmer took part in the inaugural Brighton Trail Marathon, set on a challenging and hilly route which merged with the road marathon towards the finish. 

The UK’s Boston Marathon and Half Marathon took place in Lincolnshire today, with Gavin Hall and Prairna Sharma travelling to take part. Gavin ran the marathon in 4.04.53, while Prairna ran the half in 2.02. 

Kate Dixon and Gavin Clifton also travelled to the Lake District this week, to take place in the challenging but picturesque Loughrigg Fell Race, a 4 mile run with 1080 feet of elevation. 

Further afield, Striders travelled to take place in the Paris Marathon, running through the famous streets of the city. There were Personal Bests for Sophie French (3.25.50), Richard Pillinger (3.37.38) and Bex McMurray (3.48.44). 

In equally exotic climes, Ivan Ghouse completed his one hundredth half marathon today at Lake Garda, in a time of 1.39.21. 

Finally, Jake James completed an incredibly impressive feat this week, running the entire Cornish South West Coastal Path. This involved a jaw-dropping eight back-to-back ultramarathons, covering 287 miles and 58,400 feet of elevation. He ran for 60 hours and 28 minutes, and raised an astounding £2,000 for charity in the process.