Bath Half Marathon

The Bath Half Marathon (stylised as BATHALF) is an annual road running half marathon held in Bath, England, normally on the second or third Sunday in March. It has been held almost every year since 1982. The race was first run in the year after the first London Marathon and has remained a popular race for runners preparing for that event. The next race is scheduled for Sunday 15 March 2026.

It is the largest one-day charity fundraising event in South West England, raising over £2.2 million for charity in 2016.

Course

File:Bath Half Marathon 2009.JPG

Main group of runners in 2009, on Pulteney Road, Widcombe

The Bath Half is a fast flat course, straddling both sides of the River Avon. The race starts and finishes at Royal Victoria Park.

The route follows two laps from the park, first heading westbound out of the city centre along the A4 road (Upper Bristol Road and Newbridge Road) to Newbridge and crossing the 'New Bridge' at the 'Twerton Fork' at the beginning of the dual carriageway. From here the race heads eastbound on the A36 back towards the city centre, along Lower Bristol Road, past Churchill Bridge, then continues up Rossiter Road and Pulteney Road South, before going into Great Pulteney Street, U-turning at the former start and finish location and heading back down to Churchill Bridge via the same route to complete the out-and-back section.

The route then crosses the River Avon via the Churchill Bridge, heads past the city centre and Green Park via the A367, before cutting through Monmouth Place to re-join Upper Bristol Road and begin the second lap.

The second lap follows largely the same route as the first, however, the out-and-back section is not included for a second time, and the route makes a direct left turn at the Churchill Bridge instead.

At the Monmouth Place, the route breaks-off from the main loop and continues straight-on up Chapel Row, Queen Square and Queen's Parade as the incline begins to steepen. The route then heads up the only significant hill in the course: the final climb up Royal Avenue back into the park. The incline flattens-out for the final 200 metres of the route where it finishes in front of the Royal Crescent.

Course history

The course used largely the same route from 2006 to 2020, starting and finishing on Great Pulteney Street with Bath Recreation Ground as the race headquarters.

In 2022, the race relocated to Royal Victoria Park, starting at nearby Queen Square and finishing in the park, next to the new race village. The new course followed largely the same roads, but in a 'different order'. The out-and-back section along Great Pulteney Street was introduced, with the direction of the main loop being reversed; the route ran westbound along Lower Bristol Road and eastbound along Newbridge Road and Upper Bristol Road, finishing with a sharp incline up Marlborough Lane.

In 2023, the course was revised again: the start and finish were both moved to the park's Royal Avenue, and the main loop was switched back to its traditional direction.

Results

Year	Date	Competitors	Athlete	Nationality	Time (h:m:s)	Athlete	Nationality	Time (h:m:s)
1982	21 March	Unknown	Nigel Gates		1:03:01	Joyce Smith		1:11:45
1983	20 March	Unknown	Nigel Gates		1:04:24	Annette Roberts		1:15:35
1984	18 March	Unknown	Maurice Cowman		1:04:13	Priscilla Welch		1:12:13
1985	17 March	Unknown	Steve Anders		1:03:29	Veronique Marot		1:11:10
1986	16 March	Unknown	Steve Anders		1:02:35	Veronique Marot		1:10:23
1987	15 March	Unknown	John Wheway		1:03:02	Veronique Marot		1:11:53
1988	20 March	Unknown	John Wheway		1:04:11	Sally Ellis		1:11:38
1989	19 March	Unknown	John Wheway		1:04:26	Bronwen Cardy-Wise		1:15:20
1990	18 March	Unknown	Steve Brace		1:05:11	Veronique Marot		1:13:46
1991	17 March	Unknown	Chris Buckley		1:04:41	Karen MacLeod		1:13:31
1992	15 March	Unknown	Colin Walker		1:03:59	Ann Roden		1:15:26
1993	14 March	Unknown	Steve Brace		1:04:05	Andrea Wallace		1:09:39
1994	20 March	2,321	Chris Buckley		1:03:44	Hayley Nash		1:13:15
1995	19 March	Unknown	David Taylor		1:04:22	Karen MacLeod		1:14:17
1996	17 March	Unknown	Phil Makepeace		1:05:15	Hayley Nash		1:16:10
1997	16 March	Unknown	Gareth Davies		1:06:55	Hayley Nash		1:18:37
1998	8 March	Unknown	Stuart Hall		1:06:52	Melanie Ellis		1:15:34
1999	21 March	Unknown	Tony Graham		1:06:58	Debbie Gunning		1:18:36
2000	12 March	2,831	Alan Sheppard		1:05:48	Helen Purdy		1:15:55
2001	11 March	3,091	Paul Green		1:04:57	Annie Emmerson		1:11:13
2002	10 March	3,486	William Musyoki		1:04:14	Jo Lodge		1:14:01
2003	16 March	3,582	Huw Lobb		1:04:51	Debbie Robinson		1:11:57
2004	14 March	3,767	Joseph Riri		1:02:20	Miriam Wangari		1:14:37
2005	20 March	5,898	Simon Tonui		1:02:53	Susan Partridge		1:13:10
2006	19 March	5,993	Simon Kasimili		1:04:08	Cathy Mutwa		1:12:43
2007	25 March	8,165	Tewodros Shiferaw		1:02:09	Liz Yelling		1:09:27
2008	16 March	10,054	Raymond Tonui		1:05:21	Roman Gebresse		1:13:09
2009	15 March	10,690	Simon Tonui		1:03:09	Joyce Kandia		1:11:49
2010	7 March	5,293	Ezekiel Cherop		1:03:03	Michelle Ross-Cope		1:12:07
2011	6 March	10,848	Edwin Kipkorir		1:04:00	Edith Chelimo		1:11:25
2012	11 March	10,695	Edwin Kiptoo		1:02:01	Jane Muia		1:11:19
2013	3 March	11,062	Tewodros Shiferaw		1:03:26	Polline Wanjiru		1:10:28
2014	2 March	11,208	Nicholas Kirui		1:03:13	Perendis Lekapana		1:10:53
2015	1 March	11,693	Paul Martelletti		1:05:27	Emma Stepto		1:13:48
2016	13 March	11,352	Robert Mbithi		1:01:45	Lenah Jerotich		1:12:24
2017	12 March	12,748	Ben Fish		1:05:16	Ruth Barnes		1:15:32
2018	4 March	Cancelled due to snow
2019	17 March	11,348	Chris Thompson		1:03:09	Kate Reed		1:12:44
2020	15 March	6,827	Paul Pollock	Template:ROI	1:04:14	Becky Briggs		1:14:34
2021	Cancelled due to COVID-19 & highways restrictions
2022	16 October	6,857	Kadar Omar		1:05:04	Atsede Gidey		1:11:54
2023	15 October	9,240	Jonathan Escalante-Phillips		1:04:25	Phillipa Williams		1:13:05
2024	17 March	8,421	Omar Ahmed		1:04:42	Becky Briggs		1:14:24
2025	16 March		Jake Smith		1:02:20	Abbie Donnelly		1:09:54

File:Bath Half Marathon2.jpg

Leading runners in 2006, Simon Tonui and Simon Kasimili

Effects of COVID-19 pandemic

The 2020 event faced criticism after it went ahead on despite the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic rapidly increasing; the UK went into lockdown nine days after the race took place.

A number of organisations pulled out, and local MP Wera Hobhouse called for it to be cancelled, saying "protecting the most vulnerable in our city from a further spread of the infection must be the priority." Organisers denied accusations they were irresponsible, and the event took place with half the usual number of participants. Bath MP Wera Hobhouse later said lives probably would have been saved had the event been cancelled, but the "organiser had no guidance from Government to stop the event." Bath Half race director said "We are not aware of any data or evidence linking outdoor participation events such as the Bath Half with the spread of COVID-19, or with any fatalities from COVID-19 ... In the absence of any such data this type of discussion could be regarded as speculation, even scaremongering."

The 2021 event was first postponed to September, and then cancelled in April 2021 owing to uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 restrictions, combined with planned road closures for improvement works.

The 2022 event was originally scheduled for 13 March, but the race was subsequently pushed back to 29 May due to "pressure on the highways" while extensive roadworks were ongoing in the city. The race was then postponed for a third time, being moved to 16 October.

The 2023 event remained at the autumn date, taking place on 15 October, and in 2024 the race returned to its traditional March date for the first time since the pandemic.

External links

• Bath Half Marathon on the ARRS website
• Template:Sister-inline