Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

First ever winner of Baker Hughes 10K looks back on 30 years of race

Fraser Clyne was a Scottish international athlete, who now writes about sport.
Fraser Clyne was a Scottish international athlete, who now writes about sport.

Three decades ago, Aberdeen was preparing to host its inaugural Baker Hughes 10K.

And the event has subsequently grown from strength to strength, and will mark its 30th birthday on Sunday.

It is a major milestone for the area’s sporting community, but none more so than for the maiden winner Fraser Clyne.

Mr Clyne, who had competed for Scotland at the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, finished the race in 30minutes and 24 seconds.

Reflecting on the event, which he has won on more than one occasion, Mr Clyne said the race had evolved with the passing of time.

He added: “There were roughly 1,500 people that took part [in 1987].

“Although it was a big number, both the standard and depth of finishing time was better at that time, but you probably had a lot more serious runners taking part.

“I think the numbers are a lot bigger now, but it was always a big event from the start.

“There are definitely more women taking part now, I think it’s probably about 50-50 – there has been a huge upsurge in women’s running in the past 10 years.”

The 10K was born out of the city’s annual marathon, but eventually superseded that event when it was discontinued a few years later.

The route started and finished at the beach as it does now, but it also incorporated Union Street, Holburn Street and Riverside Drive.

Mr Clyne, who reports on athletics in the Press and Journal’s sports section, explained that the increased popularity of the race among ordinary people has been mirrored nationally.

He said: “The event started alongside the marathon, but almost immediately there were greater numbers doing the 10K.

“It’s been a good way to get everyone involved in running, it’s the basis for a lot of sports.

“It’s easy to do, it doesn’t require facilities or spending much money and you can do it anywhere.

“It’s fantastic that this has been able to go on for so long now and it has become a fixture of the calendar for Aberdeen.”

There are 3,989 runners taking part in Sunday’s race, with three wheelchair competitors also participating.