Long Welsh Championship 2026 race results
Brecon Beacons/Bannau Brycheiniog (34km/1700m) was the Long Welsh Championship fell race for 2026. Forty runners took part in this classic fell race in the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park in south Wales to be crowned Welsh Champions on a humid summer day.
The race was run anticlockwise taking in eight summits, starting with Carn Pica as the first summit, visiting the main ridge in the centre of the national park, and Tor y Foel as the final summit before descending to the finish.
Congratulations to the Championship winners Tony James (1st man, unaffiliated) in a time of 3:38:42 and Hannah Large (1st woman, Westbury Harriers) in a time of 3:41:56. Bethan Logan and Rhian Probert (both Mynydd Du) were 2nd and 3rd women in the Championship, and Owain Williams (Rhedwyr Eryri Harriers) and Wyndham Turner (Mynydd Du) 2nd and 3rd men. To be eligible for the Championship, runners must be a paid-up member of the WFRA by a certain date in advance of the race, which meant that the 1st and 2nd placed men in the race were not eligible.
The long fell races are always my favourite and it was great to be back at Bannau Brycheiniog after a few years away during pregnancy and postpartum. I hadn't run it anti-clockwise before but really enjoyed the big first climb up to Carn Pica. I was ahead at the top but was convinced all the way round that Bethan would fly past me. That kept me pushing on hard! I was pleased with the line I took after the Torpantau road crossing and had a bit left for a good climb up Tor y Foel. I lost time as usual on the downhill charge to the finish but I was totally surprised and delighted to finish as Welsh Champion.
I was lucky to have one of those rare races where things just click and the body feels strong. It's inspired me to focus more on fell racing next season and move away from doing as many long trail ultras. Fell running is definitely what I enjoy most and I'm excited to try some new races and try to improve my descending skills!
- Hannah Large (1st woman)
It's been an incredibly fun year of 'trying really hard' in the WFRA races and I was immensely proud with my result to finish 3rd overall. I was shocked to realise during prizegiving that 1st and 2nd weren't registered with the WFRA which left me as the WFRA Long Distance Champion for 2026 (shoutout to Huw Davies and Tom Scrivens results respectively).
With the day being so hot, it was a race favouring those who slowed down the least and paced well. After a controlled effort on the first long climb up to Carn Pica, I could move well across the tops with legs to push hard on all the descents (the best bits), and found myself rising through the field for the rest of the race.
- Tony James (1st man)
Prizes included perpetual trophies made by local fell runner and Race Organiser Andy Creber, along with bespoke clocks, egg cups and slate trophies made by a small family business in Penmaenmawr, north Wales – Raven Eve Designs.
Race Organiser Gary Davies said:
The traditional race route was tweaked a little this year to finish at Talybont-on-Usk village. We were blessed with good weather too. The runners said that they loved the course but didn’t thank me for the addition of the Brinmore trackway to the finish! Massive thank you to all the marshalls and volunteers for making it a success.
Well done to everyone who took part and congratulations to all the overall and category winners. Thank you to Race Organisers Gary and Dawn Davies and to everyone else who supported the race on the day.
