Mossman man Jimmy Hilton and Dutch runner Saskia Jurriaans have won the male and female categories of the 42-kilometre Steve Moneghetti Marathon, the flagship event of Great Barrier Reef Marathon Festival 2014 in Port Douglas. 

Other winners at the Festival, held on Sunday morning in Port Douglas, include Sidney Willis and Carolina Younan as the fastest male and female runners for the gruelling 74-kilometre JCM Ultramarathon, along with Laurie Green and Lauren Drury as the male and female winners of the 21-kilometre Sheraton Mirage Half Marathon.

Chris Stonier and Amanda Donaldson were the fastest male and female runners for the 10-kilometre Newsport Daily event. 

14-year old Gordon Milne and 15-year-old Clio Ozanne-Jaques were the male and female winners of the 5-kilometre Bendigo Bank 5000.

Festival ambassador and marathon legend Steve Moneghetti placed second in the event named after him, following closely behind Hilton for the majority of the 42-kilometre race. 

Hilton, 35, said the race, beginning at 5:30 as the sun rose over Four Mile Beach, had taken every ounce of his stamina. 

“I was giving it everything I had at the end there,” he said.

“It was easy at the start but I had to push myself getting up the Bump Track, I got to the top and did the turn, and I saw Steve Moneghetti was barely 20 metres behind me. 

“I thought ‘I’ve got 20 years on Steve, I can’t let him in front of me. 

“I gained about 2 or 3 minutes on the way down the Bump Track but I had Moneghetti breathing down my neck the whole way.”

Hilton praised the marathon’s course and organisers of the Festival. 

“It’s a sensational track with a lot of varied terrain, plus a magical environment - it’s also very well-organised and there’s a very different atmosphere here to other events.”

29-year-old Jurriaans said she was very impressed with both the event and Australian hospitality. 

Despite hailing from Northern Europe she said the blistering Far North Queensland heat. 

“I feel pretty good, honestly I expected more of a problem with the heat at the start than I had - I drank plenty of water at the start of the race and I think that helped me out,” she said. 

“The marathon has a very good atmosphere, the company is great and everyone is very friendly.”

“It’s my first time in Australia, and it’s so beautiful, and the people are so friendly! It’s like everyone here is already friends with you before you meet them, they always say ‘hey mate how are you going,’ I was in France recently and everyone is so much more formal there.”

Moneghetti, 52, said he was happy to finish second in his own event and said the Festival was an excellent opportunity to both promote the sport of marathoning and the town of Port Douglas. 

“I had Jimmy in sight for most of the course but I’m glad he came in first, it’s good for the event,” he said. 

“There’s been a great atmosphere here today, there’s been lots of families and lots of young competitors, which is great to see because they are the future of our sport.

“Around the time of the Eclipse Marathon in 2012 the idea of having marathons in Port Douglas was seen as a bit weird and out-there, I think, but now the community is really embracing the concept because you can come and do and excellent marathon then have a holiday afterwards!

“Personally, one thing is always going to stay with me is the sight of the sun coming up over Four Mile Beach at the start of the race, it was a beautiful morning and I’m never going to forget it.”

Organiser Sam Cullen said the event had been a success. 

"The Great Barrier Reef Marathon festival is a great example of what can be achieved when community organisations work together, and what can happen with the support of great sponsors like ours. 

"Congratulations to everyone that took part, and we're looking forward to making it even bigger and better next year."

A full list of results from the day can be found here. 

Check out Newsport's gallery of photos below.