Hayle Runners conquer the heat at Indian Queens Half Marathon

By about halfway, most of the field had made peace with the same thing. The clock was not going to be kind. What began as one of Cornwall’s quicker half marathons had turned, under a punishing summer sun, into a straight fight to reach the finish line. Sixty-two members of Hayle Runners took that fight on at Indian Queens on Sunday, and came away with the ladies’ team title, first and second in the men’s team competition and 10 age-category awards.

A fast course, a very different day

The Indian Queens Half Marathon, the tenth race of the 2026 Cornwall Grand Prix series, is usually a magnet for personal-best hunters. It opens with a rapid downhill before dropping onto the Goss Moor Trail, then asks for a steady climb towards Rosedown Kennels before looping back to Indian Queens through the nature reserve. On the right day it is one of the county’s quickest half marathons.

This was not that day. Soaring temperatures rewrote the plan for almost everyone, and quick times gave way to endurance. Plenty of runners parked their target splits early and simply dug in.

📷Hayle Runners ladies team

Hayle’s ladies take the team title

The green vests still delivered. Hayle’s ladies produced another strong showing to finish first team on the day. Lucy Paull led them home, with Fiona O’Neill, Tamara Kearney, Teigan Turner, Andrea Simmons and Amy Greef completing the winning six.

First and second for the Hayle men

The men’s result showed off the club’s depth. Hayle took both first and second place in the team competition. The winning team was Sam Farmer, Liam Rowe, Edmund Bennett, Kyle Hampton, Peter Barnes and Ross Rielly. Close behind, Neil Hayhurst, Amar Musneckis, Daniel Millington, Elliott Holmes, Lee Standen and Steven Wherry combined to secure second.

📷Hayle Runners A mens team

Ten age-category awards

The age categories brought another 10 awards back to Hayle. Tamara Kearney took bronze in the Female Under 35 category, Julie Towers won the Female 60-64 title and Andrea Simmons carried on a remarkable season with victory in the Female 70-74 category.

For the men, Sam Farmer secured bronze in the Under 35 category, Liam Rowe finished second and Ross Rielly third in the 35-39 age group, and Edmund Bennett claimed silver in the 45-49 category. Steven Wherry won the 60-64 title, Jon Eldon topped the 65-69 category and Chunky Penhaul finished second in the 75-79 age group.

📷Hayle Runners B mens team

Debuts, and personal bests earned the hard way

There were firsts to celebrate too. Kyle Hampton marked his debut in a Hayle vest by finishing inside the overall top 20 and helping the first men’s team to victory. Scott Redrup completed his first half marathon in green, while Sue Powell and Charlotte Main also made their Hayle Runners debuts.

Personal bests counted for double in the conditions. Andrew James knocked eight minutes off his half marathon best, and Tamara Kearney took an extraordinary 16 minutes off hers. Sam Robinson and David Guffick also recorded half marathon personal bests. Yvonne Watkins, Andrew Searle, Lucy Paull and Andrew Heather all set course personal bests, and Sam Kearney trimmed 11 minutes off her previous time around the Indian Queens loop.

Hayle Runners chairman Richard Collett said: “Indian Queens is usually a race where people turn up hoping for a personal best. This year, by about halfway, most runners had accepted that the wheels had well and truly fallen off the bus and the goal had become simply getting to the finish.

“That makes the results even more impressive. To win the ladies’ team competition, finish first and second in the men’s team event and still see so many personal bests despite the conditions says a lot about the strength of the club.”

The club thanked the local organising team, the marshals, volunteers and the many Cornish running clubs whose support helped stage another Indian Queens Half Marathon. There was a particular mention for Emma Taylor who, a day after breaking her ankle at parkrun, still turned up in a cast to cheer on her clubmates and take photographs out on the course.

Hayle Runners results

Runner	Time
Sam Farmer	1:15:33
Liam Rowe	1:20:23
Edmund Bennett	1:22:14
Kyle Hampton	1:22:53
Peter Barnes	1:23:28
Ross Rielly	1:24:20
Neil Hayhurst	1:24:30
Amar Musneckis	1:25:50
Daniel Millington	1:26:04
Elliott Holmes	1:27:55
Lee Standen	1:28:09
Steven Wherry	1:31:07
David Guffick	1:32:47
Aidan Tappin	1:33:03
Mark Williams	1:33:06
Jon Eldon	1:33:50
Samuel Little	1:35:23
Andrew James	1:35:43
David Wilding	1:37:11
Ashley Williams	1:37:16
Scott Abraham	1:44:10
Lucy Paull	1:43:06
Fiona O’Neill	1:45:51
Tamara Kearney	1:46:08
Andrew Searle	1:48:52
Peter Kearney	1:49:03
Teigan Turner	1:49:03
Andrea Simmons	1:49:09
Amy Greef	1:50:39
Darren Uren	1:53:12
Liam O’Neill	1:53:13
Nathan Cudmore	1:54:34
Richard Collett	1:55:01
Julie Towers	1:55:24
Nicholas Peters	1:58:23
Emily Bennett	2:00:27
Richard Collier	2:01:47
Hannah Bundy	2:04:17
Scott Redrup	2:06:24
Maddy Knowles	2:07:24
Helen Knowles	2:07:26
Teresa Moore	2:08:05
Mike Oxley	2:09:05
Chunky Penhaul	2:09:45
Susan Powell	2:10:17
Alice Picking	2:10:27
Adam Glenville	2:11:46
Andrew Heather	2:14:07
Cas Leo	2:15:07
Rowan Mulliss	2:20:57
Nick Kelly	2:21:25
Charlotte Main	2:26:41
Heather Wilson	2:30:03
Laura Patryas	2:35:13
Stanley Marsden	2:35:14
Mark Squire	2:38:23
Helen Squire	2:51:20
Emma Johns	2:53:01
Yvonne Watkins	2:53:01
Sam Robinson	2:55:21
Sam Kearney	3:03:18
Donna Dark	3:19:50

📷Hayle Runners team – Photo by Jacob Gardner