27 July 2015

The inaugural Diamond Relays took place tonight at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, with 230 teams taking part in the 5x5km road relay.

Over 1000 runners took to the course, which incorporated iconic landmarks such as the Orbit Tower and the Aquatics Centre before finishing in the Olympic Stadium. In the last few days, the likes of Usain Bolt, Jessica Ennis-Hill, Mo Farah, Jonnie Peacock, David Weir and Hannah Cockroft graced the track at the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games and tonight the teams had their moment to shine.

The runners not only had the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of the stars from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, but in doing were a part of history as they ran on the Olympic track for the final time before the new surface is laid in preparation for the 2016 outdoor season and London 2017.

European and Commonwealth 800m silver medallist Lynsey Sharp was on hand to put the teams through a warm-up ahead of the event and was full of praise for the event, which gave opportunities to runners of all levels. 

Sharp said: “The Diamond Relays have shown that there is a huge appetite for mass participation events in London. The event has attracted people from all levels and it’s great to see them following the many world-class athletes that competed on the track at London 2012 and the years since then.”

The winning team of London Marathon staff, who won in a time of 1 hour and 22 minutes took home a wooden engraved plaque to their workplace were delighted to win the showpiece event after taking in the surroundings of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Click here for the results of the 2015 Diamond Relays.