There are a lot of things you start doing when you turn 16—maybe learning to drive, or trying to disassociate yourself from your parents. One thing you probably weren’t doing was running a 13-minute 5K. On Thursday night in Northern Ireland, Swedish teenager Sebastian Lörstad finished third in the Armagh 5K road race, setting a new age group world record of 13:36.
The 16-year-old took charge from the gun, setting the pace and leading the race deep into the final kilometre. But in the closing stretch, pre-race favourite Andrew Colley of the U.S. (who, at 33, is twice Lörstad’s age) unleashed a surge to win in a new course record of 13:33. Britain’s Jack Kavanagh followed two seconds behind in 13:35, while Lörstad, despite being outsprinted, made history by breaking Jakob Ingebrigtsen’s age-group record, setting a new 16-year-old best by mere seconds. He also missed the Swedish senior 5K record by only four seconds.
Colley, Kavanagh and Lörstad were three of 154 runners who shattered the 15-minute barrier on Thursday at the Armagh International Road Race, with 22 of them breaking 14 minutes. Dubbed one of the fastest 5K races in the world, it has garnered a reputation for its competitive field and fast, five-lap course around a communal park (The Mall) in the middle of town. A massive crowd lined the park to cheer on runners in the men’s 5K and women’s 3K races.
Every February, runners from all over the world flock to Armagh, drawn by the allure of a chance to test their limits on one of the world’s fastest courses. This year, the race hosted runners from Sweden, Finland, the U.S.A., Germany and the Netherlands. To qualify for the race, men must run a time of 16 minutes or under for 5K. The last-place finisher (219th place) in this year’s men’s field finished in 16:23—still an impressive time.
This year set a new record for the race, with 22 more individuals breaking the 15-minute mark compared to last year’s record of 132 men.
Fantastic @ArmaghS @Armagh5k tonight. Women’s 3k won in 9:04 by Verity Ockenden, Swansea. Men’s race won in new course record 13:31 by Andrew Colley USA. Story of night 13:36 by 16 yr Sebastian Larstad of Sweden (Unofficial age WR). Delighted to be on livestream. @EDAC_Youtube. pic.twitter.com/g3n1iVECuq
— Fintan Reilly (@fintanreilly) February 13, 2025
You can view the full results from the 2024 Armagh 5K, here.
