ATTENTION all athletes and runners! There’s less than four weeks left to secure a standard entry in the inaugural Bournemouth Marathon.

Thousands of runners from across the UK and abroad have already signed up for the historic event which looks set to become a highlight of the UK running calendar – but the closing date for standard entries is June 30.

“There are still places left for the marathon,” said race director Neil Kilgour, “but we would urge participants to register as early as possible to guarantee their standard place in the starting line-up. After June 30, runners can still enter the marathon via a charity place.

“There are a host of worthwhile charities to choose from including our official charity Macmillan Cancer Support, and our top five Affiliate Charities - RNLI, Cancer Research UK, Stroke Association, Julia’s House and Breakthrough Breast Cancer.”

The Bournemouth Marathon Festival will be held over the weekend of October 5 and 6, with the half-marathon and full marathon taking place on what’s known as “Super Sunday”.

Bournemouth’s five-kilometre “Speed of Light” race takes place at dusk on October 5 and runners taking part in the “Supersonic” 10k run can enjoy music from local bands along the route.

Two Saturday junior races, designed to fire children’s enthusiasm for fitness, will guarantee there’s something for all the family.

Both the half and full marathon start at Kings Park in Bournemouth before heading through the cafe cosmopolitan area of Southbourne and out towards the area of natural beauty Hengistbury Head.

Much of the closed road route is along the clifftops and promenades of Bournemouth and Poole. The final section of the marathon also takes runners around Sandbanks and Poole Harbour.

To guarantee your place visit run-bmf.com. Keep up to date with all BMF news on Facebook.