The Oldham Half Marathon has the potential to become one of the best half marathons in the country, according to race winner, Andi Jones, a Commonwealth Games athlete who also represented Great Britain at this year's European Marathon Championships.

 Jones, who went to secondary school in Oldham, completed Sunday's race in just over an hour, at 1hr 8min 15 seconds.  The first female runner back was Jacqui Khoueiry with a time of 1hr 34min 37seconds.

 Jones said: "Well done to Oldham Community Leisure and Oldham Citizens Advice Bureau for creating such a great event. I would love to see this race grow to attract thousands - Oldham can certainly pull off a big half marathon and it has the infrastructure to do so. I would also like to see the cultural diversity of the runners in the race reflect more of the local area of Oldham – the town is culturally rich and diverse and this should be celebrated and reflected in the race. "

 The charity race, known as the Mill Town to Moors, took runners  through the centre of Oldham out towards the Saddleworth Moors before returning back to the town, cheered on along the way by Oldham residents who turned out to give their support.

 Race director, Alan Keane, said: "We couldn't have been happier with the way the race went – sustained support from the local authority, great response from Oldham residents, terrific volunteer marshalls and a crowd of runners who really enjoyed the race, despite those killer hills!"

 The race was officially started by Mayor Olwen Chadderton who was joined by  Councillor Shoab Akhtar, Deputy Leader of Oldham Council and Cabinet Member for Business Skills and the Town Centre, who presented the prizes after the race.

 The race was full with a total of 300 people running the tough 13 mile course. Organisers say that due to the success of Sunday's event they plan to offer more places next year.

 "The feedback from entrants has been overwhelming with 100% of runners reviewing the race online saying they would do it again. We are confident that next year will be bigger and better, bringing more people to the borough and creating a positive image of Oldham," commented Keane.