Lamont Marshall won the new Beyond Barriers 10K yesterday in a time of 37 minutes 50 seconds after taking a wrong turn and having to double-back around the final city block to reach the finish line.

But there was no such mistake for Kavin Smith as he retained his BTFA Half-Marathon title with a solid 1.17.47, while Dawn Richardson put almost 10 minutes between herself and her nearest rival to win the women's race.

The half-marathon went off without too much of a hitch, not so the 10K race held in conjunction with the main event which presented a stumbling start for the newest race on the Island's athletics calender.

But the organisers of the new-look BTFA Half-Marathon and Beyond Barriers 10K will be hoping that, just as William the Conqueror tripped and fell leading the last successful invasion of the British Isles, their stumbling start will also be a prelude to great success.

Marshall, 24, who retained his Bacardi 8K title the previous weekend, took it all in his stride, despite ending up with a finishing time more than five minutes slower than his best.

He admitted he was partially at fault for showing up just before the starting gun was fired, having mistakenly believed the race was to start half-an-hour later, leaving no time to warm up or double-check the race route.

He ran with second placed Chris Page for the opening mile before pushing ahead, but ended up coming down Bermudiana Road from the northern rather than the southern end. Race officials redirected him and he managed to complete the final section and stay ahead of Page, who clocked 40.41 ahead of William Wood's 41.55.

"Once I got going I put in a few good miles. It is a new course and I was not familiar with it. I was all over the place," said Marshall.

Laura Keyes was victorious in the women's 10K, running 48.01 from Daniella Skotnicki (49.48) and Rachel Jooste (52.10).

The half-marathon, formerly a point-to-point course from St. George's to Hamilton, was switched to the International Race Weekend half-marathon loop course, only run in the reverse direction.

Most runners enjoyed the difference, although a headwind on the long hill from John Smith's Bay to St. Mark's Church proved challenging. In the early miles it was Peter Mills and Simon Ashby who led, but Smith bided his time and reeled in the duo by Terceira's gas station on North Shore.

"Mills came with me for a bit but he was interested in six-minute miles," said Smith, who pulled away and ran the remainder of the race alone, finishing with a four-and-a-half minute lead from Mills, who ran 1.22.11 and Ashby (1.24.54).

"I got into my comfort zone and I was just running and enjoying myself. Today was my best effort yet (this season). It's good to come back and not set big hard goals," said Smith.

Mills made an effort to stay with Smith's pace, but then dropped back again to rejoin Ashby.

He said: "Simon was suffering a bit, so I pushed on. I'm pleased to have run 6.13 average miles considering the wind on South Shore. It was a great race, superbly organised."

Ashby went into the race having only trained 20 miles the previous week and a mere 10 the week before.

"Peter broke away after Flatts Village, I tried to go with him. It is a challenging course, and a bit lonely in places," he said.

Fourth overall, and first woman, was Dawn Richardson. Her finishing time was 1.26.53.

"It was really windy from John Smith's Bay to Spittal Pond, but it was a nice course and there were some good hills, although my time was horrendous," said the Toronto Marathon champion. Once she was running alone, she turned up her iPod and kept her rhythm going by "skipping the slow tracks" as she listened to Finger Eleven, Shaggy, UB40 and others.

Women's runner-up was Karen Smith (1.36.33) from Deborah Blaxell (1.42.12).

Race director Glenn Robinson said: "We're pleased with the turn-out, it is more than double what we had last year and it is going to grow.

"We have heard a lot of encouraging criticism and we will revisit this at the table and look to next year.

"Adding the 10K has increased the overall numbers and runners loved the course. It was a perfect day for running and I want to thank the BTFA for allowing me to do the race and to all the volunteers and support staff."

Men's age-category winners in the 10K were: Chris Cabral (20-39), Chris Page (40-49), Paul Singh (50-59), George Jones (60+), and for the women: Daniella Skotnicki (20-39), Lizzie Peckett (40-49).

Men's age-category winners in the half-marathon were: Calvert Lee (20-39), Peter Mills (40-49), Robert Jones (50-59), Mike Whalley (60+) and for the women: Emily Dunne (16-19), Andrea Banks (20-39), Karen Smith (40-49) and Lynn Norman (50-59).

Full results – see Scoreboard