FACTS and statistics over 33 years of the Wilmslow Half Marathon:

1> In the first race in 1984, there were 1,646 finishers. That compares to 4,064 last year.

2> Five men have won the race twice. They are ST Anders (1985, 1986), Bashir Hussein (1993, 1997), Andy Green (1994, 1995), Nick Jones (1999, 2000), Tomas Abyu (2005, 2007).

3> Five athletes have won the women’s race more than once. They are Suzanne Rigg (1992, 1994, 1996), Heather Heasman (1998, 1999), Yelena Burykina (2002, 2003), Michelle Ross-Cope (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010).

4> Every finisher receives a goody bag which includes a medal and t-shirt.

5> Hopewiser became the first title sponsors of the Wilmslow Half Marathon in 1994, the 10th anniversary run.

6> The men’s and women’s course record holders are Isaac Macharia (Kenya) who clocked 1hr 1min 52secs in 2004; Perendis Lekapana (Run Fast) who recorded 1hr 11mins 24secs in 2015.

7> Over the 32 races so far, the men’s record has been beaten seven times, the women’s record on eight occasions.

8> Christie Hospital confirmed that the total sponsorship money they received from runners competing in the 2016 Waters Wilmslow Half Marathon was £57,000.

9> The event headquarters is Wilmslow RUFC at the Memorial Ground in Pownall Park on Kings Road, Wilmslow.

10> A limit of 5,000 is placed on the number of runners allowed to compete, this due to the levels of car parking and other facilities at the event HQ at Wilmslow RUFC.

11> The Wilmslow Half Marathon has run every year since 1984, except for 2001. That year’s race was cancelled due to the outbreak of foot and mouth across the country.

12> The event broke the 2,000 finishers milestone for the first time in 1997. Further milestones reached were 3,000 in 2003 and 4,000 in 2012.

13> The lowest number of finishers was 1,231 in the 1988 edition, while the highest was 4,079 in 2015.