With less than three weeks to go, AJ Bell Great Manchester Run has revealed the line up for the elite field races with both 2024 Men’s and Women’s Champions returning to defend their titles. Elite athletes will line up alongside 35,000 participants on the morning of Sunday 18th May to take on either the 10K or half marathon distance, making this the biggest Great Manchester Run in a decade.
Vincent Ngetich of Kenya set a P.B of 27.25 last year, narrowly missing the Course Record by just 1 second. He recently came third at the 2025 Tokyo Marathon so looks likely to put on a strong defence of his Great Manchester Run crown. Gotytom Gebreslase, from Ethiopia, also returns to defend her title after setting a P.B here in 2024 with a time of 30.32.
Joining the men’s field is Ethiopia’s Selemon Barega, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic 10000m Gold Medalist and 2022 World Indoor Champion. Competing in his first Great Manchester Run he said, “This is actually my first 10k road race outside of Ethiopia, which is actually quite hard to believe. I’ve competed all over the world over 10,000m on the track but it’s strange to think that this is my debut on the roads outside of home. I’m excited to compete in Manchester in such a big race with a great history”.
On Sunday 18th May, Manchester will also see the exciting debut of Selemon Barega’s fellow countryman Deresa Geleta who finished second in February’s Tokyo Marathon.
In the women’s field, Gebreslase will face stiff competition from the likes of Hellen Obiri (Kenya) the 2024 Olympic Marathon Bronze Medalist and three-time Great Manchester Run champion. Medina Eisa (Ethiopia), who holds the fastest time in world this year posting 29:25 in Castellón, Spain, will be one athlete to watch closely too. Also racing is 2024 runner up Rosemary Wanjiru from Kenya alongside another former champion Vivian Cheruiyot. Leading the British challenge will be Verity Ockenden who is coming off an impressive PB of 31.35 and Alex Bell, who finished 7th at the 2020 Olympics over 800m.
Speaking from her training base in Addis Ababa, Gotytom said “I really enjoyed racing in Manchester last year so it was an easy decision to come back and try to and make it two in a row. I can see many good girls here this weekend so I know it will be tough, but I am ready.”
This year’s event will once again feature elite men’s and women’s wheelchair races, which start from 8.10am. Leading the field in the Men’s race are defending champion JohnBoy Smith, and 2023 winner Sean Frame. Also returning to the streets of Manchester is Olympian David Weir CBE who is looking to add a sixth Great Manchester Run win to his tally. Headlining the Women’s field is 2024 Great North Run Champion, Jade Hall who is looking to repeat her Great Manchester Run success of 2023.
What time will the AJ Bell Great Manchester Run 2025 elite races take place?
The Great Manchester Run, including elite races, will be broadcast live on BBC One from 11am until 1pm.
08:10 Elite Wheelchair Start
08:15 Half Marathon Start
11:30 10K Elite Women Start
11:45 10K Elite Men and Masses Start
AJ Bell Great Manchester Run 2025 Elite Men’s 10K
| Vincent Ngetich | Kenya |
| Selemon Barega | Ethiopia |
| Santiago Catrofe | Uruguay |
| Deresa Geleta | Ethiopia |
| Mosinet Geremew | Ethiopia |
| Filmon Tesfu | The Netherlands |
| Shota Nishiwaki | Japan |
| Kenya Sonata | Japan |
| Brett Robinson | Australia |
| Ben Connor | Great Britain & NI |
| Scott Stirling | Great Britain & NI |
| Nick Griggs | Ireland |
| Matthew Clowes | Great Britain & NI |
| Jack Gray | Great Britain & NI |
| Keiran Clements | Great Britain & NI |
| Jed Noblett | Great Britain & NI |
| Owen Hind | Great Britain & NI |
| Tommy Power | Great Britain & NI |
| Josh Griffiths | Great Britain & NI |
| Mark Bostock | Great Britain & NI |
| Brandon Quinton | Great Britain & NI |
| Paul Graham | Great Britain & NI |
| Youssef Khadiri | France |
| Andrew Smith | Great Britain & NI |
| Chris Coulson | Great Britain & NI |
| Daniel Bradford | Great Britain & NI |
| Alex Brown | Great Britain & NI |
| John Travers | Ireland |
| Antti-Pekka Niinisto | Finland |
| David Bishop | Great Britain & NI |
| Gavin Taylor | Great Britain & NI |
| Dillon | Malta |
| Jasper McDowell | Great Britain & NI |
| Jacob O’Hara | Great Britain & NI |
| Alexander Oyarbide | Spain |
| Nathan Mapperley | Great Britain & NI |
| Cameron Dockerill | Great Britain & NI |
| Ilyass Zouhry | France |
| Jake O’Regan | Ireland |
AJ Bell Great Manchester Run 2025 Elite Women’s 10K
| Gotytom Gebreslase | Ethiopia |
| Medina Eisa | Ethiopia |
| Hellen Obiri | Kenya |
| Rosemary Wanjiru | Kenya |
| Vivian Cheruiyot | Kenya |
| Isobel Batt-Doyle | Australia |
| Emily Sisson | United States of America |
| Verity Ockenden | Great Britain & NI |
| Jill Holterman | The Netherlands |
| Alexadra Bell | Great Britain & NI |
| Melissa Duncan | Australia |
| Charlotte Purdue | Great Britain & NI |
| Aoife Kilgallon | Ireland |
| Louise Small | Great Britain & NI |
| Heather Townsend | Great Britain & NI |
| Kate Maltby | Great Britain & NI |
| Martina Conner | Great Britain & NI |
| Isabelle Pickett | Great Britain & NI |
| Eilidh Bell | Great Britain & NI |
| Lucy Fairclough | Great Britain & NI |
| Sinead Taylor | Great Britain & NI |
| Eden O’Dea | Great Britain & NI |
| Georgina Revell | Great Britain & NI |
| Nia Griffin | Great Britain & NI |
| Emilia Platt | Great Britain & NI |
AJ Bell Great Manchester Run 2025 Elite Wheelchair 10K
| Johnboy Smith | Great Britain & NI |
| Sean Frame | Great Britain & NI |
| David Weir | Great Britain & NI |
| Simon Lawson | Great Britain & NI |
| Callum Hall | Great Britain & NI |
| Joshua Landmann | Great Britain & NI |
| Tiaan Bosch | South Africa |
| Rafa Botello | Spain |
| Norberto Chávez | Spain |
| Jade Hall | Great Britain & NI |
| Joanna Robertson | Great Britain & NI |
Starting on Portland Street, the course passes some of Manchester’s most iconic landmarks all along the route Old Trafford, the Imperial War Museum at Salford Quays and The Lowry before a grandstand finish on Deansgate. With the Half Marathon now sold out, remaining places for the 10K are expected to sell out shortly so enter now to secure your spot on the famous start line. You can find out more about the Great Manchester Run and enter here.