MORE than 170 runners and 150 fun runners took part in the Hospice of the Valleys 10k race and fun run at Parc Bryn Bach, Tredegar, on Sunday, while hundreds of keen sportsmen and women turned out to run the Kymin Dash in Monmouth.

Runners from clubs all over Gwent took part in the 7.1 mile run on Sunday from Kymin Road, climbing 850ft to the Round House before finishing at the Monmouth School Sports Club.

This is the second year the race has been organised by Spirit of Monmouth Running Club who re-launched the race last year after a long hiatus.

Emma King, 33, race director, said: "I am really pleased with how the race went, we had double the entries of last year. There were 112 last year and more than 250 runners this year.

"The weather even held off, it only started to rain as the last runners were coming in. It's the biggest event in our club calendar."

She added: "More local people took part in this year's event compared to last year which is brilliant. We just need to make more people aware of the race."

The fastest man was Felix McGrath from the Westbury Harriers who completed the race in 40 minutes and 59 seconds and Sean Taylor of Mynydd Ddu running club came in second place with 43 minutes and five seconds.

The fastest woman was Frances Bullock of the Spirit of Monmouth who ran the race in 51 minutes and 42 seconds with Lou Summers of Pontypool as the second fastest female with a time of 52 minutes and 11 seconds.

The race was in aid of the Gwent branch of the Army Benevolent Fund (ABF) The Soldiers' Charity, which give lifetime support to serving and retired soldiers and their families. Monmouth School Sports Club, Robert Price Builders' Merchant and Mountain fuel were all sponsors.

Despite being overcast in Tredegar it was the biggest field yet for the sixth annual Hospice of the Valleys 10k, which saw runners complete two laps of the lake and the golf course.

Everyone else stuck to the path for the fun run, which is in its 13th year and was entered by people of all ages.

The event as a whole usually raises between £7,000 and £8,000, explained one of the organisers Helen Morgan, and the charity is hopeful the total will be reached again this year.

"I'd like to thank the Park and all our volunteers and 12 marshals, as well as St John's Ambulance," she said.

The hospice is based in Tredegar and offers palliative hospice care at home to people living in Blaenau Gwent.

Visit www.hospiceofthevalleys.org.uk for details.