At Pembrey recently the Great Welsh marathon and half marathon were run and there were successes aplenty for Aberystwyth Athletic Club runners as records were broken and debuts were undertaken.

For Aber AC runner Richard Anthony the aim was to secure his place in the Guinness Book of Records as the fastest runner to complete a marathon dressed as a Lucha Libre wrestler.

He was fortunate to have the support of another Aber runner, Edd Land in his training regime and on a bright spring day he set about his record challenge: “At the start, I foolishly and involuntarily tried to keep up with the three hour pacer, but after about four miles I came to my senses and let the pack pull away.

"In order to secure the record I needed to selfie video my costume at each mile marker and managed to cross the finish line in 3.10.27, just under 14 minutes quicker than the previous record and 36th overall from 480 starters. Now the hard work begins of ratifying the record with Guinness.”

Richard had another reason to complete the challenge: “My brother Gareth, sadly passed away last year and one of the last things he did was to visit the beach near his hospice in Porthcawl.

"We both loved the seaside having grown up in Aberystwyth, but sadly, due to the steep ramp and soft sand at Porthcawl, the ordinary ambulance wheelchair couldn’t take Gareth down onto the sand.

“My brother thought it would be a great idea to fund raise for a beach wheelchair for Rest Bay and the money I raised from this marathon will help make that dream a reality. Thanks to all who have given their support.”

There was also a marathon personal best for Chelsey Morris as she completed the course in 4.12.02, and for Aber AC stalwart Mel Hopkins, the Great Welsh marathon was another feather in his cap as it was his first ever marathon and he duly completed it in 4.20.25 securing third place in his age category, not a bad achievement for his first 26 miler. In the half marathon Lina Land continued with her rich vein of form finishing in 2.01.28.

It is a well now fact that Aber AC runners don’t like to take things easy as proven by Louise Barker and Dave Powell’s exploits at the Shropshire Way 80k festival, an event open to both walkers and runners and has varying length courses.

Louise tackled the full distance trail marathon and completed the challenging course in five hours and 24 minutes with Dave Powell tackling the 80k ultra where he finished in 4th place in a time of 10 hours and six minutes.

Louise was the second lady home in a gruelling race: “This was perfect weather for running above our heads – lovely, clear skies, but underfoot was another story... mile after mile of ankle deep mud and slick grass. It is a tradition by now for this event to be held on the first weekend of April and it attracts a good crowd – great event – and always an advantage if you cross the finish line to be welcomed by a mammoth!”

If you would like to contribute to Richard’s fund you can visit his fundraising page at JustGiving