James Nobles in action on the second day of the race. Photo: No Limits Photography

Two university researchers have taken the honours in the Montane Dragon’s Back Race.

James Nobles and Lisa Watson won the men’s and women’s events respectively in the gruelling 380km run down the length of Wales.

The finish of the race, which was due to be staged at Cardiff Castle, had to be moved because of commemorative events taking place at the venue following the death of Queen Elizabeth.

A more muted end to the race took place on Saturday at Bute Park, a short distance from the castle.

Nobles, 31, a Bristol University research fellow, crossed the line on Saturday afternoon, 50hrs 40mins 23secs after setting off from Conwy Castle. Second place went to David Jackson who completed the course in 52hrs 29mins 31secs. Lee Parker finished third with a time of 53hrs 22mins 56secs.

Fastest woman Watson was fourth overall, completing the course in 53hrs 46mins 22secs, well clear of runner-up female Bridge Glaister, who ran the route in 65hrs 58mins 52secs. Third-placed woman was Victoria Morris, in a time of 69hrs 34mins 41secs.

The start saw 222 men and 30 women depart from Conwy, with 102 competitors managing to run the full course, which involves 17,400m of ascent and five overnight camps. The event attracted runners from 26 nations.

Organisers said on Saturday: “On the evening of day four, following news of the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the event team had to make new plans to safely bring the race to a conclusion in Cardiff.

“With Cardiff Castle no longer available for the finish, a new site in the city was identified and arranged.

“The most important priority was to allow runners from around the world to complete the race. Meanwhile, the decision was taken to pause the posting of updates via the event website and social media accounts, though the public could still follow the live event tracking online.

“Today’s finish was managed in a lower key way than originally planned, in Bute Park near the castle.”

James Nobles ran consistently throughout the week and was always in the top three of the men’s race. The early leader was Chris Cope, a Nottingham GP with type 1 diabetes, but he picked up an injury on day four and had to nurse his body around the final two days.

Welshman Simon Roberts, who was defending the title, moved into the lead on day five, but tendonitis ended his race early. Nobles, who volunteered at the race last year, put in another strong run on the final day to secure the win.

Lisa Watson traverses Crib Goch on the Snowdon massif. Photo: No Limits Photography

In the women’s race, Lisa Watson, who won the event in 2019 and was another previous voluneteer, led from start to finish, extending her advantage every day. By the start of day six, Watson, 32, and from Sheffield, had a 12-hour lead on the rest of the field and was also lying sixth overall. On the final day, she once again set the pace in the women’s race and never looked likely to falter.

She has become the first person to win two editions of the Dragon’s Back Race as an individual. She continued the tradition of outstanding performances by female athletes in ultrarunning events. Helene Whitaker (Diamantides) was the overall winner of the first Dragon’s Back Race in 1992 alongside Martin Stone, when it was a team event for pairs of runners.

She then won the women’s race as an individual in 2012, while other women have featured in the overall top five, including Jasmin Paris, who was second in 2015.

Nobles, who lives in Cheltenham and is originally from Huddersfield, works as a public-health research fellow. He said: “I can’t believe it. It was one hell of a week. I stuck with my game plan and somehow it’s paid off.

“I believed that I could do it, but I had no idea whether or not it would happen. I am absolutely over the moon and I don’t think much beats right now. Coming in here and seeing everybody is so good.”

Watson, a researcher at the University of Sheffield, said: “It’s a really good feeling now that it’s done. Genuinely, I’ve really enjoyed pretty much all of the race and there have only been a couple of low moments. I was smiling ear to ear from start to finish so that was great. I love this race.”

The Montane Dragon’s Back Race was first held in 1992 and, after a gap of 20 years, was resurrected in 2012. The race has since been established as a regular event on the calendar and now takes place every year. It is regarded as one of the toughest multi-stage mountain races and in 2021 fewer than 25 per cent of the starters completed the full course to earn the trophy for every finisher, and title of ‘Dragon Slayer’.