DORCHESTER’S first ever marathon and half marathon have been nominated for a national award – and the organisers are hoping the town backs them with supporting votes.

Both races have been put forward in the best newcomer categories of the 2018 Running Awards.

Andy Palmer, owner of White Star Running which organised the races, said: “Our ethos is ‘runner first’ and we know what makes a really good run for runners.

“We believe in races that are tough, marshals who are friendly, views that are awesome and beer that is cold.”

Around 1,500 people took part in the two events with runners coming from all over the UK as well as from Dorchester. 

Hundreds of people turned out to cheer the runners on through the middle of Dorchester and its surrounding villages.

Carl Miles, from Plymouth, was just one of the runners who took part in the race. 

He said: “I would like to give a heartfelt thanks and warm appreciation to the White Star team and Dorchester Rotary for a superbly well organised and fun inaugural event.

“We camped as a family with friends and found the welcome and organisation friendly, efficient and with a great sense of humour from when we arrived on Saturday till we left on Monday.

“The race, the support, the Love Station, the medal, the t-shirt, the town crier, the food, the cider, the barn dance, the hot showers, the clean loos, the everything. It was all awesome and perfectly clear that a huge amount of hard work, dedication and passion had gone into this. Thank you to all, we loved it and we will be back.”

John Adams, chairman of the organising committee, added: “We set about organising a first class event which involved the local community and raised money for good causes at the same time.

“We achieved all these things and are really proud that we had such positive feedback from all the runners who took part. We hope that this is reflected in the voting in these awards.”

People can vote at therunningawards.com