British duo Andrew Lamont and Anwen Darlington earned victory in the men’s and women’s races respectively at the 40km (25-mile) Skyrace Snowdon on Sunday.
The event, containing a brutal 3,150m (10,355ft) of elevation, takes runners through the famous Rhyd-Ddu path, Pen-y-Pass, Ogwen Valley and Pen-y-Gward before returning to Rhyd-Ddu, is not for the faint of heart.
Both race victors did so in style, crossing the finishing line with a healthy advantage over their nearest rivals on the day.
In amongst the action
Lamont leads from the front
Lamont controlled the race from the early going, and opened up a healthy lead to his rivals. The Brit completed the grueling course in 5:52:26 almost ten minutes ahead of his nearest rival, Scotland’s Andy Bryce.
Bryce (6:03:57) was further four minutes, 43 seconds ahead of Oliver Mitchell (6:08:40) in third place. He pipped Luke Roberts (6:10:16) to the final spot on the podium. Robe Greenwood (6:18:49) completed the top five.
Darlington dominates
In comparison to Lamont, Darlington truly demolished the women’s field, taking victory by almost 45 minutes from Robyn Cassidy.
Welshwomen Darlington (7:07:33) finished 13th overall in the race, crossing the finish line 44 minutes, 23 seconds ahead of Cassidy (7:51:56), with Alicia Schwarzenbacher (7:58:49) rounding out the podium.
Sophie Gibbens was next over the line in a time of 8:10:34, with Alexandra Ridge finishing fifth in a time of 8:20:20.
Brady, Sharp take Copper SkyTrail titles
Ireland’s Sarah Brady and Great Britain’s Brian Sharp [pictured above] took the plaudits in the 25km (15-mile) Copper SkyTrail.
Brady (3:44:25) beat Wales Catrin Meurig (3:55:37) and Poland’s Kamila Piotrowicz (4:14:56) to the finish line.
In the men’s race, Sharp led home compatriots Iwan Evans (3:15:23) and Paul Bowyer (3:17:54) in a time of three hours, seven minutes and 19 seconds.
2022 Snowdon Skyrace Results:
Men
- 1. Andrew Lamont (GBR) – 5:52:26
- 2. Andy Bryce (SCO) – 6:03:57
- 3. Oliver Mitchell (GBR) – 6:08:40
- 4. Luke Roberts (GBR) – 6:10:16
- 5. Rob Greenwood (GBR) – 6:18:49
Women
- 1. Anwen Darlington (WAL) – 7:07:33
- 2. Robyn Cassidy (GBR) – 7:51:56
- 3. Alicia Schwarzenbach (GBR) – 7:58:49
- 4. Alexandra Ridge (GBR) – 8:10:34
- 5. Sophie Gibbens (GBR) – 8:20:20
*Nationality as denoted on tracker.