Isle of Man Parish Walk: Liam Parker takes 2019 title

Liam Parker last won the Isle of Man Parish Walk in 2017

The winner of the 2019 Isle of Man Parish Walk said he was "relieved" to finish as he beat his nearest rival by 23 minutes.

Liam Parker crossed the line shortly before 23:45 BST with a time of 15 hours 44 minutes and six seconds.

The endurance race sees participants given a limit of 24 hours to complete the 85-mile (137km) course, which runs through 17 island parishes.

It is the 28-year-old Ramsey man's second victory in the event.

He was previously crowned champion in 2017.

David Vandercoilden took second place (16:07:08), while five-time winner Robbie Callister finished in third (16:38:20).

Last year's champion, Richard Gerrard, led the field in the early stages before retiring at Andreas at about 18:00.

Gerrard, who holds the accolade of the fastest ever parish walk finisher, suffered from "sickness", his team said.

The race record, which was set in 2015, stands at 14:40:08.

Nearly 1,400 people took part in the event, which started at the NSC on Saturday morning

Emma Shilling led the women's field across the line with a time of 17:07:49.

Owen Dudley took the men's under-21 title (6:42:14), while Danielle Barton crossed the line first in the women's under-21 field (6:58:33), in a race which finishes in Peel, 32.5 miles (52km) from the start.

This year's event saw nearly 1,400 entrants set off from the Isle of Man National Sports Centre in Douglas at 08:00 on Saturday.

A total of 158 participants finished the race within the 24 hour limit, 49 within the final hour.

Under-21 winners Owen Dudley and Danielle Barton finished their race in Peel