It’s been a few days since the 2025 Manchester Half, and news of personal bests and records being matched/broken continues to flood in, but nothing quite beats the fastest caterpillar EVER getting themselves in the Guinness book.
Yes, we did say caterpillar.
In case you have no idea what we’re talking about (it’s pretty much what it says on the tin), a caterpillar refers to when multiple runners stick themselves in a daft bit of fancy dress and race in a line while joined together in a suit that looks like, well, you get the gist…
Fun and wholesome in itself, right? Indeed, better still, though, it appears as though this particular group of fundraisers not only completed this year’s Manchester Half-marathon with the added challenge of running behind one another in a caterpillar outfit, but have just smashed the Guinness World Record.
As you can see, the four top blokes – Matthew Athersmith, Eddie Evans, Andrew Cairns and Jimmy Craig – didn’t just get the 13.1-mile feat completed quickly; they were absolutely RAPID.
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The 2025 MCR Half saw plenty of people breaching the 90-minute mark or going even faster, but we were not expecting to see the familiar caterpillar fancy dress sight finishing in 1:14:08.
Utterly ridiculous, boys.
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Other notable bits of history made, besides the largest ever crowd of 28k racers and more than £1.6 million raised for different charities, included runner Sophie Godley smashing the women’s record for the fastest time while carrying (*checks notes*) 13 golf clubs. Silly and inspiring – like it.
Although they’re still waiting for full confirmation from the official Guinness World Records organisation, the Manchester Half media team seemingly verified that they beat the previous caterpillar half-marathon record by nearly 15 whole minutes.
Dubbing themselves ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’, the group of mates from Skipton in North Yorkshire ran in memory of one of Matthew’s friends, Darren, who sadly died back in 2022.
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Speaking to the BBC following the remarkable achievement, Matt said: “Darren was so loved by everyone; we just didn’t know what was going on beneath the surface.”
Applauding the “unbelievable” and incredibly uplifting atmosphere on the day, they were one of many participants who added on extra caveats to the already impressive fitness and fundraising challenge.
It was nevertheless an emotional day for all of them. For instance, one quarter of the caterpillar, Jimmy, also had a heavily pregnant wife waiting at home that he had to race back to.
Generating money for male mental health organisation and suicide prevention charity, Andy’s Man Club (AMC), which has continued to grow year on year, they went on to add: “It’s OK to talk, and people shouldn’t suffer in silence. We all would have tried to help.”
Andy’s Man Club outposts are popping up all over the place, including many here in Greater Manchester, so for anyone struggling, please know that you are NOT alone and can always speak to someone. If you’re interested in giving AMC a go, you can find your nearest support group HERE.
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Last but not least, for those of you local to the region who are ready to reward yourselves now that the big runs are all said and done, look no further.
Calling all Manchester runners: if you've boxed off all your races for the year, it's time to reward yourself properly – with a boogie, of course 🪩💃
Featured Images — Manchester Half (supplied)/Andy’s Man Club
Sport
The route for the 2027 Tour de France Femmes revealed ahead of Manchester debut
Danny Jones
The route for next year’s women’s historic Tour de France has been announced, with some of the best riders in the world set to pass through Greater Manchester and more.
Yet another big coup for the region and our sporting scene.
Speaking with the City Council, now that the full route has been revealed, our very own Dame Sarah Storey joined many in celebrating another huge moment for us; the female Tour de France is not just back up and running, but aiming to become bigger than ever.
🚴♀️ The world’s best cyclists are heading to Manchester! 🚴♀️
The routes for the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2027 have now been revealed, with Manchester set to host the Stage One finish on Friday 30 July and the Stage Two start on Saturday 31 July. pic.twitter.com/OMMlhdorqP
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) April 21, 2026
The Stockport-born swimmer turned Team GB cyclist and multi-Olympic gold medallist knows all about what makes this particular sport special, having swapped a previous and highly successful career for an entirely different discipline.
As has now been fully confirmed, the 2027 Grand Départ will be getting underway with our friends in Leeds, before heading through Yorkshire and into Greater Manchester.
Upon entering our neck of the woods, the course will pass through the likes of Rochdale and Oldham into Manchester city centre, before heading into Stockport and neighbouring North West county, Derbyshire, and finally heading back through the Peaks.
Spread across two incredible days, the race itself will finish in Sheffield, with another UK first happening down in London, as the capital will also host the inaugural team time trial held in this country.
You can see the official event’s breakdown of what locations feature in which stages of ‘The Big Loop’ in more detail below.
Leader of Manchester City Council, Bev Craig, went on to add: “Being able to watch the world’s best cyclists in action and in such an iconic event, taking place right here on our doorstep in the heart of Manchester next summer, is going to be epic on so many levels.
“Championing women and girls to participate in and enjoy sports – including cycling – at all levels from entry through to elite, is really important to us and next year’s Tour de France Femmes is set to play a huge part in helping inspire the next generation of sporting talent from our city.
“With millions of spectators expected to line the routes, including here in the city centre, we’ll be going all out to help ensure the event’s success with what is set to be a ‘Tour takeover’ of the city to maximise opportunities for local people and businesses to get involved, to grow their own sporting skills, and to take part in the many community activities being planned.”
Having hosted everything from the BRITs and the MOBO Awards to another Super League Grand Finals in both netball and rugby, not to mention numerous other huge events over the past couple of years, it truly is a great time to be living in Greater Manchester.
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied via Manchester City Council)
Sport
adidas and JD are giving away FREE Nell’s pizza with a Manchester Marathon medal
Daisy Jackson
Manchester Marathon finishers will be able to reward themselves with free Nell’s pizza this weekend, thanks to a collaboration with adidas and JD.
The sportswear giants will be teaming up with one of the city’s top pizza spots to hand out the ultimate post-race reward at Kampus this Sunday.
It’s all to celebrate the launch of the new adidas EVO SL ATRs, a shoe that’s built with running miles in mind.
And there’ll be a chance to grab an exclusive t-shirt too, and have your official marathon finish time branded on-site.
adidas and JD are giving away FREE Nell’s pizza with a Manchester Marathon medal / Credit: Supplied
As well as a free slice of Nell’s famous New York-style pizza and a drink, Manchester Marathon finishers will be able to enter into a range of giveaways, with prizes including the EVO SL ART, adidas merch, and range of other prizes.
And you’ll be recovering with a slice in hand and a live DJ keeping the post-race energy high
All you need to do is show your Manchester Marathon medal at Nell’s at Kampus, to grab your free slice, and check out adidas and JD’s latest drop.
Friends and family are encouraged to join too – after all, all runners know a marathon isn’t possible without that support crew.
There are also a bunch of giveaways and more to look forward to / Credit: Supplied
Pizza slices will be handed out on a first-come, first-serve basis, so make sure your sprint to Nell’s is your fastest yet.
Thankfully, the adidas EVO SL’s are built for speed…
adidas x JD x Nell’s – Manchester Marathon event
Taking place on Sunday 19 April, from 12pm to 8pm
Free pizza slice and a drink when you show your Manchester Marathon medal (while stocks last)
Exclusive merch and great prize giveaways from adidas and JD
Plus photo moments, live DJs, and more
Find it at The Bungalow, Kampus, M1 3GL (next to Nell’s)
Danny Jones -
16th October 2025 
