Philip Woollins and Teresa Ruiz pushed against windy conditions to prevail in the 7.13-mile Hamilton Princess and Gosling’s Rum to the Beach race on Sunday.

Woollins, who finished fifth in 2024, took advantage of the absence of last year’s top four to cross the finish line in 43min 33sec. He was followed 21 seconds later by Will Green, with Tim Price (44:49) completing the top three.

Ruiz’s time of 49:12 placed her eleventh overall, with Stepanka Sprincova (50:38) the second female across the line and Rose-Anna Hoey (52:09) finishing third.

“Normally there’s really quick guys here, so it’s nice when they don’t turn up and I get a win,” Woollins told The Royal Gazette.

“I think I’m in better shape than I was last year. I ran the Chicago Marathon with Will Green a couple of months ago and that fitness is helpful for me.

“I’m a lot denser than the other guys, so a bit of wind works better for me than for them. I thought I had more of a gap at Burnt House Hill, but when I turned around Will was right behind me, which was a bit upsetting.

The 34-year-old Woollins used the race to prepare for the Chubb Bermuda Triangle Challenge next week, when he will be doing all three events, the Butterfield Mile, the 10K run and the marathon.

“I’m doing the Front Street Mile local race,” he said. “That’s the main plan and we’ll see how the marathon goes as I’ve never done it before.

“I’m going to take it easy in the 10K because that’s going to hurt if I run the marathon off a fast 10K.”

Ruiz was pleased with her achievement after entering the race with low expectations.

“I went into the race without much expectations,” she said. “It was a hard course, the weather was quite good even though we were racing against a headwind.

“This was a simulation for next weekend. I just came back from being home in Spain, so I’m happy that all the training that I did there helped me a lot in this race.

“I’m doing the half challenge next week. I have no expectations there, but I know there will be good runners and I just want to run against them to see where I stand.

“If I have a good race, that’s great, if not then it means I’ve to do more training. Ideally, I want to train for the Bermuda Half-Marathon Derby, that’s my goal.”

Green was content with his second-place finish as he also gears up for the half challenge on Friday.

“I’m very happy to finish second because Phil is in very good shape,” he said.

“I was trying to stay on his tail for most of the race and he had a gap on me. I started to close in on Burnt House Hill, but when he turned around and saw me, he increased his speed and I didn't have the pace to keep up with him.”

Sprincova, who has been a prominent feature in the race, which starts from Gosling’s in Hamilton and finishes at Hamilton Princess & Beach Club on South Shore, expressed her delight at finishing behind Ruiz.

“I’m super happy to finish second,” she said. “To be honest with the conditions, I was expecting worse and I tried my best to keep up with Teresa, but she kept on going.

“This was good practice for next weekend. I’m doing the half challenge and it would be nice to beat Teresa in any of those races, it’s a healthy challenge between us.”

Hoey put on a courageous display after receiving treatment for breast cancer in the last few months, which left her unable to defend her PwC Bermuda Marathon title.

“It was my first race after surgery and it’s been a bit of a rough road for me,” the 43-year-old said.

“I’ve only been running for two weeks and I’m just glad to be at it again. It was a hilly course and I actually ran with my son’s friend Adam Cenzer. We ran together a bit and that really helped me a lot.

“I’m going to try the half challenge just for fun. To be honest, my body is quite weak and it’s not as strong as it was. Hopefully, with time, I’ll start to feel like myself again.”

Price, a man famous for running shirtless even in inclement weather, was happy with his third-placed finish.

“It wasn't as bad as I expected,” the 34-year-old said. “It was a little windy on Harbour Road, but I was up for it.

“It was good to see Phil and Will run well. Phil had a 20-metre gap on everyone for the whole run and then going up Burnt House Hill, he took off and Will followed. I couldn't see them until the end of the race.

“I’m doing the full challenge this week and I have no expectations there since I run for fun. I know I’ll never get back to competitive shape.”