Chester's brand new 10K road race will have the northern end of the city buzzing this weekend.

Sunday will see 2,000 elite, club and fun runners assembling at the Northgate Arena for the start of the inaugural Chester 10K.

Starting at 9.30am, the 6.2-mile road race will take runners out to Mollington where they will loop around the village before returning to the city for a spectacular finish by the Town Hall and Cathedral.

The race, which sold out in less than 14 days, has created a great deal of interest in Chester and beyond.

And the good news is that organisers expect it to go-ahead despite the weather given it will be held on fully closed, regularly used and gritted roads.

A spokesperson said: "We are monitoring the weather closely for the Chester 10K.

"As the race is held on fully closed and regularly used roads we don't anticipate any change to the race at this time. We are arranging for extra gritting to ensure the route is kept clear."

Runners and supporters are encouraged to keep checking the Chester 10K Twitter and Facebook pages for updates.

Many of the runners tackling the 10K will be using it as preparation for the Essar Chester 2018 Half Marathon being held on Sunday, April 29.

Places are filling fast for the 37th running of the classic half marathon, which also sells out every year.

"The interest in our city based races has been enthusiastic to say the least," said joint race organiser Chris Hulse.

"We are in the middle of a new running boom as more and more people take to the streets. This is reflected by the rise in the number of people entering our events."

Claire House Children's Hospice is the official event charity and Chester-based Active Leisure Events expect their three races this year to raise £1m overall for local and national causes.

Hulse added: "It will be quite a spectacle which may well inspire others to get into the sport."