Athletics: 'Overwhelming' to break Manx marathon record, says Cain

The women's record had previously stood since 1993

Long-distance athlete Christa Cain says it was 'overwhelming' to find out she'd broken an Island record which had stood for over three decades.

Whilst taking part in the Valencia Marathon in Spain on Sunday (1 December), Cain set a new Isle of Man women's marathon record of two hours, 39 minutes and ten seconds.

That performance was 26 seconds quicker than the previous benchmark which had been set by Brenda Walker in Rotterdam all the way back in 1993.

Having only taken up endurance events in the last few years, Cain explains where her passion and drive to do so comes from:

In a standout 2024 so far, Cain has also impressed at other races this year such as the Boston Marathon and Berlin Marathon off-Island in April and September respectively.

Elsewhere, along with a victory in the Cheshire Half-Marathon also in September, on Island her recent honours include wins in the Western 10 women's race in October and Syd Quirk Half Marathon women's running race last month.

There were also several other Island competitors taking part in the Valencia meeting last weekend.

Eamon Farrell (two hours, 44 minutes and 25 seconds) and Lewis Crowe (two hours, 53 minutes and 42 seconds) both set new personal bests whilst Richard Costain clocked three hours, nine minutes and 35 seconds.