FALMOUTH, Trelawny — Organisers of the second staging of the Jamaica National Building Society (JN) Foundation Heroes in Action Run/Walk described yesterday’s staging of the event as a resounding success.

The Usain Bolt Foundation, which partnered in the inaugural staging of the event last year, was again on board this year.

“I understand, based on the numbers I have seen, that we have doubled the number of persons who have participated this year. We have now gone over 1,000 persons, that’s a good thing; it means that persons are finding the event very attractive,” Earl Jarrett, general manager of Jamaica National Building Society, told the Jamaica Observer.

Meanwhile, Bolt, the iconic sprinter, mirrored the banker’s comments.

“I feel good, many more people came out, which is a great thing because we are trying to get greater awareness, so I am looking forward to next year again to make it even bigger,” the legendary athlete commented.

“This year it is much bigger so it shows that we are going in the right direction, so hopefully next year it will be even bigger.”

He indicated his involvement in the event for the long haul.

“For me it is forever!” the fastest man on the planet declared.

Meanwhile, Jarrett gave kudos to the Port Authority of Jamaica, which facilitated the staging area of the event on the premises of the historic Falmouth Port, for their involvement again this year.

“I am really happy with the partnership with the Port Authority (of Jamaica) to make this possible. And I send greetings back to the board of directors, to the entire management team at the Port Authority, to open up this facility to the community to enable us to have this good event,” Jarrett said.

He hinted that the event, which featured an 8K run and a 4K run/walk this year, will see an additional feature next year.

“Of course this year we have changed it up a bit, we have 8K which is unusual and 4K. For next year we will have something different but more on that later,” he cited.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton gave the event the thumbs up, citing that among other things, it promoted health and wellness.

The winner of the male section of the 8K Run was Lenford Adams, while Ronique Williams and Lucien Graham finished second and third, respectively. In the women’s section, Ann-Marie Finnegan finished ahead of Ashelaun Linton and Chantel Cornwall.

Meanwhile, the 4K winners were Shawna-Kay Prince in the female category, and Jamario Daley for the males.

The proceeds from the event will go towards the Victim Support Division of Trelawny and additional funding to last year’s refurbishment project at the Granville Place of Safety for Girls.