Smith & Donnelly triumph at 2025 GETPRO Bath Half

• Event doubled as official British Athletics trial race for World Athletics Road Running Championships half marathon
• Smith celebrates return to his best form and just misses course record with winning time of 62:20
• Donnelly confirms selection with her 69:54 victory – the third fastest winning time in event’s history

The crowds were out in force this weekend to cheer on those taking part in this years GetPro Bath Half Marathon which saw Jake Smith and Abbie Donnelly win in the event which combined as British Athletics’ official trial race for the half marathon at the 2025 World Athletics Road Running Championships.

Smith had an enthralling battle with the winner of Omar Ahmed, the winner of last year’s event, who he eventually broke free from with about three miles to go on a gloriously sunny morning in Bath.

The Pontrypridd runner, who is preparing for next month’s TCS London Marathon and is the fifth fastest British half marathoner in history, showed he is returning to his best form after a number of years of struggle with injury and illness.

Smith finished in a time of 62:20, just 11 seconds outside the course record of 62:09 set by Ethiopian Tweodros Shiferaw in 2007. It was the fastest time ever by a British athlete on the notoriously tough Bath course and Smith’s fastest half marathon since September 2022.

Ethiopian Ahmed was second in 62:43 while Dewi Griffiths, who set the early pace, claimed the final spot on the podium with a time of 63:03, his fastest half marathon since 2019.

Donnelly, who finished sixth in the half marathon at the European Championships in Rome last year, was a dominant winner in the elite women’s race, leading from the early stages and breaking the tape in a superb time of 69:54, the third fastest winning time in Bath Half Marathon history.

Behind Donnelly, there was a fierce battle for second and third between Natasha Phillips and Annabel Gummow which Phillips, the European under-20 record holder for the half marathon distance, eventually came out on top in.

Phillips finished in 72:06 with Gummow 20 seconds further back in 72:26.

The race was the official British Athletics trial race for the half marathon at the 2025 World Road Running Championships which was originally scheduled for San Diego but is now looking for a new location.

Donnelly came into the race already owning a qualifying time of 69:41 for the World Road Running Championships and her victory, which added another qualifying time to her record, rubber-stamped her selection.

Smith will also book a place at the championships should he run inside the qualifying time of 62:00 before 11 May while Phillips will also be looking to run a qualifying time of inside 70:00 to back up her second spot and claim her place on the Great Britain team.

Smith said: “I can’t believe I have just run that time (62:20). I’ve run faster than that, but that was when I was in the shape of my life. I am only 20 seconds off getting a qualifying time for the World Championships and maybe that really tough last kilometre cost me that. There was some serious competition here today and the atmosphere was great, you couldn’t hear yourself think on the course.”

Donnelly said: “It means so much to have won here and to get the time I was looking for. I built up the pressure a lot in my head and to have got the win makes all the hard work worth it. This course is tough and needed some good training. I do feel the pressure and I get really nervous before big races, but I stayed relaxed today and managed to shelter behind some of the male athletes on the windier parts of the course which helped. I’m very happy.”

For the full results from today’s GetPRO Bath Half, click here.

Behind the elite races at the 2025 GetPRO Bath Half, more than 11,000 people started the mass participation event from 10:30 this morning, taking in the two-lap route which starts and finishes in Royal Victoria Park.

Our very own Steve Fountain chatted to race participants and spectators throughout the weekend, as the city put on a spectacular show of hospitality for visitors.

The 2025 GetPRO Bath Half is being organised by London Marathon Events in conjunction with Run 4 Wales.