46 photos from a memorable 2023 Brighton Half Marathon

It was the 33rd anniversary of the Brighton Half Marathon, and the 31st anniversary of the Sussex Beacon, the HIV charity that organises the race.

The event kicked off at 9am with the Youth Race on Hove Lawns, a dedicated 1-mile event for junior runners aged between 7-17. The Wheelchair race followed, starting on Madeira Drive at 9:27am, followed by the main race at 9:30am with over 7,000 runners taking part.

The route took runners past the stunning seafront cliff tops of east Brighton, the Royal Pavilion, The Hilton Brighton Metropole Hotel, the i360, the colourful beach huts of Hove seafront and the iconic Brighton Palace Pier. The field featured hundreds of runners new to the half marathon distance, experienced half marathoners and elite runners, with thousands of spectators lining the route to cheer on the runners.

See some great photos – courtesy of the race organisers – on this page and the ones linked, and more in the slideshow in the video player above.

In the wheelchair race Gary Cooper took first place in the men's race with a time of 1hr 5min 3sec, with the women's race being won by Ellie Page who finished in 1.25.56.

In the men’s race, Leeds University student Cal Mills took first place with a time of 1.06.37 seconds; second place went to Marshall Smith who came home in 1.06.41 third place went to Simon Heath who finished in 1.07.01.

The women’s race was won again by last year’s winner Charlotte Ragan, who finished in 1.18.24, followed by Ruby Whyte-Wilding in 1.18.30. Third place went to Amy Harris in 1.19.17.

Alongside the elite field, thousands of charity runners took to the streets of the city, raising money for local charities such as the The Sussex Beacon and Rockinghorse, as well as national charities including Alzheimer’s Society and Macmillan Cancer Support.

Charity runners included Sam Hammond, AKA Man Vs. Fridge who ran the race in aid of SSAFA, the Armed Forces Charity, carrying a fridge on his back, attempting to bag a Guinness World Record.

Also running for charity was Anthony Seddon from Portslade, running for Run2Ukraine. Anthony met his wife Anna in Ukraine when watching England play football there and has pledged to run the equivalent distance from the Amex Stadium in Brighton to the Dnipro Arena in Ukraine to raise money for medical aid.

The Brighton Half Marathon is organised by the Sussex Beacon, a Brighton-based charity which provides a range of services for men, women and families living with or affected by HIV across Sussex.

Matt Denby, Executive Director, Sussex Beacon said: "What a wonderful day, such an incredible atmosphere. Thank you to all the runners, the charities, the supporters, and the fantastic volunteers who make the event possible! The Brighton Half Marathon is the main fundraising event for The Sussex Beacon, but we also raise money for over 20 other fantastic charities, typically raising over 1 million pounds in vital funds every year.”