Running up the energy sapping Chaingate Hill, in Devonshire, proved the decisive moment in both the men’s and women’s races in the Lindo’s to Lindo’s 10K.

Sean Trott and Martina Olcheski-Bell showed superior strength to come out ahead of their nearest rivals at the top of the hill and hold on to their advantage in the final 400 metres to secure maiden wins in the popular race.

However, it was a close thing, particularly for Trott, 29, who edged Seamus Fearon by a mere three seconds for victory in 34min 11sec.

The two runners have developed a healthy rivalry in the past few months, with Fearon beating Trott in the Bermuda Marathon Weekend, only for Trott to turn the tables in last month’s Ed Sherlock 10K.

In yesterday’s race, runner-up Fearon, 38, said his pre-race plan had been to stay with Trott for as long as possible.

“We were neck-and-neck; we ran more or less together the entire race. I tried to get a bit of a gap on him before Chaingate Hill,” he said, describing his effort on the long downhill along Middle Road before the sharp turn onto the final uphill drag. He had opened up a few metres of daylight, but it proved to be not enough.

“He caught me on Chaingate pretty early, and then made a gap on me. I closed it a little bit, towards the top. Then we had a good battle, but he was a few yards ahead and I could not close the gap.”

Fearon was satisfied with his time of 34:14, a lifetime best for the distance. He said: “It was a great race. Sean is an unbelievable athlete. He trained pretty hard during the week, so he probably would have beaten me by some more had he been better rested. For me, it is great to have someone close to my level so we can have a good race”

Finishing third was Tim Price in 36:56.

The women’s race saw a close battle between Olcheski-Bell and Christine Dailey. Olcheski-Bell, 35, said: “Christine took it out really fast, and I kept a steady pace. She was ahead up to Chaingate Hill.”

It was at this point that Olcheski-Bell’s strength came to the fore. She said: “I like hills, and I thought, ‘Right, I’m just going to power through to the end’. Then I just put my head down and I ran for dear life. Christine is so strong, and I knew if I slipped up she would catch me.”

She won in 41:47, with Dailey next in 42:09, followed by Izzy Dutranoit, 18, in 43:28.

There were more than 600 entrants in the race and accompanying four-mile competitive and non-competitive walks.

The popular event, which raises funds for the Bermuda Diabetes Association, was making its return after bad weather caused last year’s event to be cancelled.

The competitive walk was won by Joseph Matthew in 40:59, from Paul Hayward in 41:09, and Shinah Simons in 42:47. The first three women were Fiona Beck in 44:23, Suranji Rathnayake in 46:05, and Gina Bradshaw in 46:15.

In the 10K, age division winners among the men were: Ryan Outerbridge (under-19) in 38:04; Moses Mufandaedza (20-39) in 37:28; Christopher Harris (masters) in 37:44; Fabrizio Alvera (senior masters) in 42:59; Andrew McComb (60-64) in 49:47; Luis Muso (65-69) in 50:22; and Michael Whalley (over-70) in 62:01.

Among the women, age division winners were: Liana Medeiros (under-19) in 45:59; Kristen Robinson (20-39) in 45:39; Sarah Thompson (masters) in 45:19; Sharon Craig (senior masters) in 49:22; Terri Durrant (60-64) in 58:08; Mayberline Black (65-69) in 64:30; and Peggy Couper (over-70) in 64:02.