Bolton United Harrier Heather Tomlinson has etched her name into the Freckleton Half Marathon history books alongside the town’s late, great Ron Hill MBE, writes Will Tomlinson.

Summertime 1964 saw Hill win the race in under 66 minutes and the Bolton running legend still holds the course record.

Now Tomlinson’s name sits alongside Hill’s after the event’s 57th annual race recently after she finished first lady in a faster time than the previous six female race winners - 1hr 24mins 24secs.

The race itself was a tactical affair, as Tomlinson found herself hunting down the eventual second lady for the first nine miles.

This played to her strengths, as she is known by her team-mates for being especially strong willed and remarkably determined. Together with her ever-improving fitness, it makes her quite the competitor.

While she is still in the relatively early stages of her running career, the full-time solicitor runs up to and in excess of 60 miles per week during heavy training blocks.

She currently has her sights firmly set on what will be her third marathon later this year, in Berlin and is working closely with her coach, Dave Shaw, with hopes to improve on her 2022 London Marathon performance of 2:55:00.

Tomlinson is a shining example of hard work and discipline and is keen to inspire the young generation of girls in Bolton.

Any girls looking to start running or perhaps take their running to the next level, can join athletes like Tomlinson at Leverhulme Park most Tuesday and Thursday evenings.