The Tropical Journeys Great Barrier Reef Marathon Festival is being hailed a huge success by organisers and the 1700 participants who took part in the event on Sunday the 1st of November in Port Douglas.

With entrants representing over 13 different countries and every Australian state and territory the day had a vibe about it rarely felt at running festivals. Camaraderie was at an all time high with runners thrilled with the magnificent courses. There are not too many running events around the world which provide courses with a mix of beaches, cane fields and rainforest tracks in the one day.

Marathon Festival Ambassador Olympic legend Steve Moneghetti was full of praise for the event.

“I have been involved for 5 years now and the 2015 Tropical Journeys Great Barrier Reef Marathon Festival set a new benchmark. A fantastic event all round. A wonderful atmosphere, perfect location and great courses. I can see this event attracting 3000 runners next year. I will certainly be coming back to Port Douglas for a long, long time,” said Moneghetti.

Just before the sunrise over 40 runners took to the grueling, but spectacular 74km James Cook University Ultra Marathon course.  Rob Clarke from the Gold Coast took out first place of the Ultra with a time of 7:23:00 and Britt Caling also from the Gold Coast took out first place for the female category with a time of 7:44:20.

As the sun struggled to peak through the clouds right on sunrise, over 130 runners in the Steve Moneghetti Marathon took off down Four Mile Beach in the company of the man himself. After being defeated by local legend Jimmy Hilton in 2014, Steve reclaimed his title and took out the first place with a phenomenal time of 3:07:21 with Jimmy taking second in 3:18;17 – a huge effort by both runners.

The winner of the 2014 Half Marathon, Cairns local Lauren Drury stepped up to the full and took out first place female in the marathon in a time of 3:46:44. Second place went to Sonya Lewis who also had a great race, finishing in 4:13:51.

The Sheraton Mirage Resort Port Douglas Half Marathon had a field of well over 600 runners, the biggest in the events history, and after running along the magnificent Four Mile Beach and through the stunning Mowbray Valley, it was Cairns favourite Nick Carling who took out the race with a time of 1:27:17 and Liz Grolimund from Brisbane took out the women’s event in 1:34:53.

The Newsport Daily 10km race also saw tremendous growth this year with the biggest field to date of over 600 runners. This event was made even more exciting with four time Olympian Craig Mottram lining up as well as Olympian Jess Trengove who has just booked her place in the Rio Olympics in 2016. Australian marathon legend Pat Carroll also took part in the event before taking the rein as MC for the remainder of the day, calling in each of the competitors in spectacular style.

No surprise to anyone, Craig stormed through the course in a blitzing time of 31:50 followed by Jess in 39:07. The 5km Bendigo Bank and 2.5km Junior Challenge also saw huge fields with runners as young as 4 taking part.

General Manager Jess Uhlig was completely overwhelmed by the event.

“Not only has our registration numbers climbed significantly over the last 12 months; but the level of support from the local community, sponsors and of course the volunteers themselves. We had over 165 volunteers manning water stations, providing safety and encouragement on course and also assisting with course set up and pack down.

“On behalf of the entire Tropical Journeys Great Barrier Reef Marathon team we’d like to thank all of the people who contributed to the success of the day including volunteers, sponsors, participants, Douglas Shire Council and of course each and every person who cheered on the runners”, said Ms Uhlig.

Director Bruno Bennett said without the volunteers the event could not go ahead.

“I would like to acknowledge all the volunteers involved both locals and non locals, as well as community groups for their support.  Without their support we could not run an event as big as this”, said Mr Bennett.

This year was the second year that funds were raised for the JCU Great Barrier Reef Marathon Research Fund through the Run for the Reef initiative.

This initiative is a partnership between the Marathon Festival and JCU to preserve the Great Barrier Reef for the generations to come.  The two projects being supported by the funds raised is the Elimination of the Crown of Thorn Starfish and the Management of Mirco plastics in the Marine environment.

Over $20,000 from the Tropical Journeys Great Barrier Reef Marathon was raised through registrations and by the runners themselves via the Everyday Hero platform.

“The date for next year’s event has been set with Sunday 6th of November locked in for the 2016 Tropical Journeys Great Barrier Reef Marathon Festival.

Registrations will open in March 2016 and we look forward to seeing everyone back next year”, said Mrs Uhlig.

For a list of all results visit: Great Barrier Reef Marathon

Gallery images by Elliot Davidson and Mossman High School seniors