Road runner Otis Robinson set two personal bests during the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon at Virginia Beach on Sunday but could not hold the pace through to the finish and had to settle for his third fastest time over the 13.1 mile distance.

Having come eighth in this year's May 24 Half Marathon Derby, the Southampton runner was hoping to better his time for the distance, which he set in New York last October ducking under one hour 20 minutes.

Things were looking good for the 34-year-old as he ran through the first 5K split in 16.52, setting his lifetime best for that distance and doing the same as he crossed over the 10K checkpoint mat in 35.59.

At that rhythm Robinson was set to hit his pre-race target of 1.17 or 1.18, but a nerve pain that affected his back caused muscles to begin tightening from nine miles onwards and the Bermudian was forced to slow down, covering his last 5K in around 22 minutes as he claimed a respectable 57th place overall in the 20,000-strong race field.

His finishing time was 1.22.17. The race was won by Kenya's James Kwambai in 1.02.11 with first woman fellow Kenyan Edith Masai in 1.12.54.

Robinson was philosophical after the race. He said: "I was disappointed at the time because I was on record pace and I'd felt pretty good. Right up to nine miles I was on sub six-minute mile pace.

"But I've had sciatic pain coming on later in long runs and I started to tighten up after nine miles. Around mile 11 it took me 10 minutes to do a mile and a quarter."

Although the pain eased a little towards the end of the race, Robinson found it difficult to get back on track, particularly over the final stretch along the boardwalk.

However, being able to cruise through both the 5K and 10K marks at record pace has given Robinson encouragement that his leg speed has improved, and is particularly pleasing in view of the fact that his next race will be a return to the Fifth Avenue Mile races in New York in the middle of this month.