Overview
- Haftu Strintzos won the Peppers Silo Half Marathon in 1:00:41 on Sunday, a time confirmed as the fastest half marathon ever recorded on Australian soil and 27 seconds quicker than the previous all-comers mark.
- Isobel Batt-Doyle won the women's half and posted the fastest time by an Australian woman on home soil, while Brett Robinson finished second in the men's half in 1:01:22 after pacing with Strintzos for much of the race.
- Ed Marks won the men's 10km in 27:57, shaving one second off last year’s 10km course record, and Caitlin Scott won the women's 10km in 31:38.
- Organisers moved the finish to Kings Wharf Road and separated the start and finish to manage growth, a change they say improves safety, spectator sightlines and the festival’s scalability.
- The festival reported roughly 20% participant growth to more than 4,100 entrants with doubled interstate and international entries and record fundraising, a trend organisers say reinforces Launceston’s emergence as a fast, high-profile road-racing venue.