About 1,000 runners will be on the starting line when the Tewkesbury Half Marathon gets under way on Sunday at 10am.

Among them will be 74-year-old Eileen Hieron, from Dursley AC, who will be running her first half marathon.

Not that she will be the oldest competitor in the race. That honour goes to 75-year-old Ken Butler, who will be wearing race number 61. Eileen will be wearing race number two.

The youngest entrant is 16-year-old Sam Maskell, who will be wearing race number 551.

“We're all geared up and ready to go,” said race organiser Andy Heyes. “The weather looks set fair. It was pretty warm last year and some of the runners struggled a bit but that shouldn't be a problem on Sunday.

“There will be plenty of water on the route and at the finish for all the runners.”

One of the big attractions of the Tewkesbury Half Marathon is that it is a fast course run almost exclusively on road.

“After about a mile the route takes the runners on a cycle path behind Morrisons which is new this year but apart from that the race is run on road,” said Heyes.

“It's a good course for PBs and there were quite a number of people who achieved PBs last year.”

Heyes expects the winner to go past the new finishing line just to the right of the leisure centre in about one hour 12 minutes and is delighted with the support the race has received this year.

“It's a big event and the fact that this year it is part of the Big Weekend Festival is absolutely brilliant,” he said.

There are 200 more runners taking part this time around than last year which in turn was 200 more than in 2015.

Among those running on Sunday are Mark Ryall, from Milton Keynes AC (race number 338), who was second last year.

Annabel Granger, from Bristol & West AC (race number 397), was first lady last year and returns this year to defend her title although it won't be easy as Linsey Ryall, who was third lady last year, is also back.

Luke Murray, from Clevedon AC, was second in 2015 and is back on Sunday along with Mike Clarke, from South Molton, who was third in 2015, and Sarah Conway, from Birchfield Harriers, who was third lady in 2015. 

In contrast to the experienced runners, Suzanne Bennett, from Cheltenham, is running the race for the first time.

It is only her second half marathon - she ran the Forest of Dean Half in March - and is raising money for the British Heart Foundation.

The 40-year-old said: “In my late 20s we very suddenly and tragically lost my dad. 

“It was totally unexpected and we were devastated. He was just 60. 

“For many years I’ve been wanting to do something monumental in his honour and to help raise precious funds to save lives via the British Heart Foundation. 

“I have finally plucked up the courage and on Sunday I’ll be running the Tewkesbury Half Marathon. It will be almost 11 years to the day we lost him. I think it could be an emotional run. I’m hoping to make it one of three half marathons I run in 2017.

“The BHF has helped halve the number of people dying from heart and circulatory disease in the UK but sadly every day hundreds of people lose their lives. It's only thanks to support from people like us that the BHF can create new treatments and discover new cures. Every pound helps so please give what you can to help me hit my target.”

Donations should be made to https://www.justgiving.com/Suzanne-Bennett5.