Coventry Godiva AC's Glynn Tromans won the B&Q Eastleigh 10K with blistering pace in ideal conditions on Sunday.
The classy athlete left more than 1,000 runners in his wake as he charged around the town in an amazing 28 minutes and 39 seconds - arriving back at Fleming Park almost three minutes ahead of second placed James Baker.
His time sets the standard for the new course which was changed this year for safety reasons - but it was a full 13 seconds better than the previous best recorded by Olympic steeplechase bronze medallist Mark Rowland in 1989.
Women's winner Caroline Hoyte, of Arena 80 AC, also came home unchallenged - with second-placed Amanda Proctor almost a minute behind.
The sunny conditions, though, were not all good news for all of the runners and many were forced to drop out.
"A lot of people dropped out at the halfway stage," said spokesman Malcolm Price. "Part of the problem was that all their training had been done in the colder weather."
SEE PAGES 53-55 OF TODAY'S DAILY ECHO FOR THE FINISHING TIMES OF ALL THE RUNNERS.
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