Dmitry Maximov gave an outstanding display of front running on Saturday to produce the quickest winning time in the Bermuda International 10K for five years.

The Russian made his break from the lead pack one mile into the race and accelerated to such devastating effect that the solo chase of Sammy N’geno, the 2000 winner from Kenya, was rendered an afterthought.

Ironically, the 24-year-old withdrew from the Elite Invitational Mile the night before after the terrific pace that Leonard Mucheru set on Front Street on the way to a new record. But, on a cool morning in overcast conditions, Maximov ruled the roads and coasted home untroubled in 29 minutes and 30 seconds — the fastest time since Stephen Nyamu, of Kenya, won in 29:17 in 1997.

N’geno finished second in 30:02 with Americans David Morris (30:22) and Matt Thull (30:28) third and fourth. Bermuda’s Terrance Armstrong, who stayed with the lead pack until Christ Church in Devonshire, was the first local finisher, and seventh overall, in 32:32 with Jay Donawa tenth in 33:14.

“This was a good result for me in the winter time, I am very happy,” Maximov said through an interpreter at the end. “The conditions and course suited me because I love uphill and downhill.”

Maximov, who hit the halfway mark in 14:29, lost only one minute on the difficult finishing stretch, which takes in Commissioner’s Hill and the tortuous 1,000-yard ascent towards the main stadium at the National Sports Centre. “It was a slow pace and I needed it to be faster,” he said of the break.

The Russian throttled back only after reaching the crest of the hill, adjacent from the bus depot, when after looking over his shoulder to see N’geno well back at the foot of the hill, he realised the race was his. “I want to run the half-marathon tomorrow so I needed to ease my pace slightly to save something,” he explained.

N’geno, third in the Mile, needed help to reel in Maximov but when Said Guermali, one of the pre-race favourites from Morocco, began to feel the effects of the early pace and stopped to walk approaching the hill after Montessori Academy, the Kenyan’s chances dissipated.

“I was hoping he would get into trouble somewhere but he didn’t,” N’geno said. “There was a group behind and I thought someone from there would go for the race, but (Maximov) kept moving and after 5K I thought that he would go for the win.

“I picked a pace that I was comfortable with and finished that way. I’m satisfied with my time because in 2000 I ran 30:14 and today I’m happy because I improved by some seconds.”

Morris, a noted marathon runner, admitted that he lacked the speed to make more of an impression on the leaders. But he finished strongly and overtook Thull outside the stadium.

“Those guys went out pretty quick,” he said. “It was all downhill the first half of the race and I was waiting for the uphills because I felt like I would be strong there. But they didn’t come until really late in the race so I wasn’t gaining on the people in front me.

“Dmitry was about 10 seconds or more ahead of me at the mile and I felt like I was going as fast as I could. I could see (N’geno) ahead the whole time but I didn’t have a chance to catch him.”

Definitely pleased with his finish was Thull, the 27-year-old from Wisconsin. “It was my first time here and I was standing at the starting line in awe,” he said. “But at that point your competitive juices kick in a little bit. I knew the faces I needed to look for and I let those guys go and ran my own race.”

Armstrong, who recorded his third successive local victory, and fifth overall, was frustrated in his attempt to better the long-standing local record of 31:41, set by John Beeden in 1988. But he took immense pride in his personal duel with the struggling Guermali, which resulted in the pair crossing the line hand-in-hand in 32:32.

“I’ve been shooting for the record for some time now,” he said. “I knew that it would be a long-shot today. When the race began, I felt really heavy. I figured that I was still feeling some of the effects of last night’s race. Other than that, it was great, I’m happy that things turned out the way they did.”

Armstrong had the benefit of running for most of the second half with Guermali, who did not have the stomach to take on the hilly sections of the course, stopping to walk on no fewer than three occasions.

“Every time he stopped on a hill I would catch him and he’d pull me along then take off again,” Armstrong explained. “But coming up Palmetto Hill he seemed to tire, so I figured that he couldn’t go any faster and decided to stick with me. I couldn’t understand him, but he kept me going at the end, because I was exhausted.”

Donawa, in his first race since completing a hat-trick of wins in the Princess to Princess a fortnight ago, did not figure after getting within touching distance of the leaders in the early stages.

“Going into the race I wasn’t in good shape so I just wanted to assess my condition,” he said after clocking 33:14. “Although it is important to run fast at this time of the year, I often feel that if you are in too much good form this early in the season you risk the chance of peaking too early and burning yourself out come May and June.”

Eddy Hellebuyck, who won the marathon here in 1994 and has brought several runners from his training camp in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was the first master in 32:53, good enough for eighth overall.