A NEW race named after the founder of computer science, renowned mathematician and Bletchley Park World War Two code breaker Alan Turing took place on Sunday. The six-stage 34.6 mile Turing Trail Relay from Ely to Cambridge and back was organised by Ely R

A NEW race named after the founder of computer science, renowned mathematician and Bletchley Park World War Two code breaker Alan Turing took place on Sunday.

The six-stage 34.6 mile Turing Trail Relay from Ely to Cambridge and back was organised by Ely Runners and won by Cambridge Triathlon 2 in 3hrs 33min 22sec, with Norwich Rr Happy Chappies second in 3:34:18 and Cambridge Fliers third in 3:38:01.

The race was run on the scenic riverside footpaths that Turing regularly trained on when he was a Fellow at King's College Cambridge.

Turing was known to push himself hard to cope with the stress of work and achieved world-class marathon standards of his era. His best time of 2:46:03, was only 10 minutes slower than the 1948 Olympic winner's effort.

Secretary of Ely Runners John Turner thought up the race.

He said: "It's a really interesting and attractive route that Alan Turing used to run and I'd been thinking about organising the race for a long time.

"I got together with club-mate Rod Baron and we made it happen. Because of the hard work and effort of many of the Ely Runners who helped to organise everything, it was a great success."

The race started and finished at Ely's Amherst Sports Field, with a cross-country trail and mixed terrain stages out along the west banks and return along the east banks of the River Great Ouse and River Cam.

Stages ranged from 5.3 to 6.2 miles, with 72 teams and 432 runners taking part and ages ranging from 15 to 72.

High winds contributed to a challenging race and some runners were covered in dirt by the finish line after falling victim to fen blow, with soil whipped off the land into dust clouds.

Director of Bletchley Park Simon Greenish presented the awards.

Mr Turner said: "We will be able to accept a considerably larger number of race entries next year after successfully staging it for the first time and it will be held on March 16."

# For full results and more pictures go to www.turingrelay.co.uk