It’s just like waiting for a bus to arrive – you hang about nearly an hour, and then two pull up back-to-back.
In this case, running enthusiasts had to wait just about four weeks for their next Bafasports race after the Midnight Runner Series hit its marquee event, but now two races have already been scratched off to start the second half of 2026 proper.
And yesterday’s Van Sertima Magnificent Seven One Lap 2026 one was another short and sweet edition to the mix.Â
Off to the races again with a one-lapper
Admittedly a bit softer technically than some of our other races so far for the year, the race offered as scenic a route as you can hope for in the 868, this time with no detours.
Usually when we race around the savannah, there’s the obligatory Hayes Street diversion to add the remaining distance to make up the 5K, but this was more about the tradition this time around as the race has been around for quite a stretch.
Starting from Mille Fleurs, the route included sights of Queen’s Royal College, Stollmeyer’s Castle, Whitehall, Roomor, Ambard’s House, and Hayes Court with each representing a piece of our rich cultural heritage.
From there, the route is pretty straightforward with a lap around the perimeter of the savannah finishing back at Mille Fleurs.
Romany and Kerr double up
On the road, Nicholas Romany followed up with another victory on the Bafasports circuit roughly 24 hours after his win in Saturday’s race beating Tafari Waldron to the clock for the second time in a row.
More on the times in a bit.
Romany clocked 10 minutes, 39.3 seconds to seal first, while Waldron wasn’t far behind in 10:44.4. Adam Montano finished third more than two minutes later in 12:56.6.
Meanwhile Nyla Kerr completed her own weekend double, finishing in 13:18.3 to seal the women’s division, while almost a minute and a half later, April Francis 14:45.2 finished second, and Aura Whittier finished third in 15:25.7.
A sign of the times?
Bafasports director, Nigel Bellamy, indicated that many have argued that the standard of road running has elevated over the decades and the winning time today was finally an opportunity to confirm those claims.
Back in 1987, Dave Ramsammy had a real go at this same race, finishing in 10:48, which was a time that stood over the last 39 years.
Although Ramsammy finished sixth then, the records for the five runners before him were lost to time, which meant that just under 11 minutes was the general benchmark to see if the elites in the 868 had truly surpassed the going rate in the 80s.
Both Romany and Waldron were more than equal to the challenge, and according to Bellamy we want more moving forward.
“The dream is the new generation will step up and surpass the marks made by the old distance runners,” he said. “This is the beginning of that, and another mark we are looking to see them dismantle is 14:12, the 5K national record held by Ronnie Holassie since 1999.”
But for now, the mark to beat will be that set by both Romany and Kerr, and we won’t have to wait long either, as we intend to host a King and Queen of the Savannah race in September.
And behind the scenes
Organising running events is complicated, but with the help of our financial sponsors we were able to kick back, relax, and watch Romany and Kerr burn the asphalt up. Thanks to Subway, the NCC, Eve, Regal, Colai’s, Dasani, Good N’ Natural, E Health, Powerade, Starbucks, and Trinebox, the race was as scenic as it was well-run.
Coming soon!
This is just the start of a few races we have on tap for June. Today features the Van Sertima Magnificent Seven One Lap 2026 while June 18 features the Community 10K Pop-Up.
We can’t wait to see you there.
Results
Men
- Nicholas Romany – 10:39.3
- Tafari Waldron – 10:44.4
- Adam Montano – 12:56.6
Women
- Nyla Kerr – 13:18.3
- April Francis – 14:45.2
- Aura Whittier – 15:25.7
*See results page for full standings