MORE than 300 runners kickstarted the New Year by setting a new Winchester parkrun record.

On New Year’s Day, 339 people turned up at North Walls Recreation Ground to begin 2019 with a 5km run - the highest number the event has ever attracted on the first run of the year.

The turnout was more than double the number who participated in the last New Year’s Day event, held in 2017, with the fastest time recorded being under 18 minutes.

Some chose to walk, taking over 50 minutes, and others volunteered as officials to coordinate the event.

The previous parkrun, on Christmas Day, attracted 400 people.