Sophie Wallis and Edward Blythman ran the fastest parkrun times in the UK this week (25-30th December).

Our weekly parkrun top ten is now sponsored by Vertebrate Publishing (my publisher) and here’s a link to buy my book on their website. They actually have a bunch of great books to choose from, especially the mountaineering ones, so don’t feel like you have to buy 1001 Running Tips.

As it’s Christmas week we have a present for everyone, two days of parkruns to feature in the rankings and a top 15 to make up for the extra day of parkrun. It’s not just because it gets confusing who ran on which day and where, when and all that jazz. It’s just us at Fast Running being lovely… not lazy.

Life is a lot easier when someone finishes first and second in the rankings though.

The fastest female this week was Sophie Wallis at Lincoln parkrun with an excellent 16:06 and it’s not even her fastest parkrun of the year (15:59)… which isn’t even her parkrun PB (15:51). December also saw a 33:18 at Telford 10k and a 32:35 from March at Trafford 10k.

And now, in both first and second for the chaps, welcome Edward Blythman. Not content with running the fastest time on Christmas Day at Bedford parkrun (14:48), the Bedford & County AC athlete went and ran the quickest time today with 14:37 at Great Denham parkrun as well. Both we parkrun PBs and there first two times under 15 minutes for the U23, so we know what Ed asked Santa Claus for this year.

The best of the rest

There was plenty of women under 17 minutes this week, seven to be exact, and Chelsea Rose Barker was second by only one second. It was 16:35 for the Bristol and West AC athlete, who is collecting 5k, 5000m and parkrun PBs in the 16:30s with a 16:39.86 at the Inter-Service Athletics Championships on the track in July and a 16:38 on the road a week later.

Both third and fourth in the men’s rankings were Sam at Southampton, but different Sams on the same day. Sam Tyas ran 14:56 on the 25th December, after a 10k PB of 29:37 at Telford a couple of weeks before and Sam Costley was just four seconds behind and ran 15:00, also ran 29:55 at Telford.

Innes Fitzgerald was the third in our rankings with 16:36 at Seaton parkrun. The 2023 European Cross Country U20 champion also won the BBC Green sport award for her decision not to run in the World Cross Country Championships earlier in the year. More information here on AW, but promise to come back to our website after.

The fastest course?

I think it’s Southampton with three events, but with 15 in each list it’s hard to say. Pegwell Bay and Doddington Hall pop up twice. I’ve raced myself today so hopefully that’s good enough! 

Women’s Rankings

Men’s Rankings