The women's winner of the Great Stirling Run marathon has criticised organisers after the event's £1,000 prize money was slashed to £200. Jennifer Wetton said she only found out about the 'insulting' award after completing last month's race, and that the smaller prize would 'definitely have been a consideration' in deciding whether to compete.
Ms Wetton, who lives in Stirling, told BBC Scotland's John Beattie Programme that she checked the Great Run website the day before the event for prize money information. It said prize money was available for British athletes but was yet to be confirmed for 2019. She felt organisers should have communicated properly from the start.
Ms Wetton is not a professional athlete but takes running seriously, fitting training around full-time work and caring for her young son. She chose Stirling over the London marathon, which was on the same day, and paid £58 to enter. She noted that the half-marathon winners received the same £200 prize despite a lower entry fee of £36.
Ms Wetton argued that £200 is reasonable for a 10k but insulting for a marathon, especially as she won £200 for finishing second in a local half-marathon earlier this year. She said £1,000 is the going rate for a Scottish marathon, pointing to £1,500 at Loch Ness and £1,000 plus charity donation at Edinburgh.
A Great Run Company spokeswoman said the prize money was brought in line with other non-televised events this year, and that the website statement made it clear the structure was changing. She apologised that the information was not posted sooner, calling it an oversight. Stirling Council said prize money was decided exclusively by the event organisers and was not a matter for the local authority.
