Wānaka athletes Simone Maier and Hamish Elliott both placed second in their respective Coast to Coast Longest Day races on Saturday (February 8).

The two athletes were the defending champions for the men’s and women’s events, and the favourites to win again this year.

The race started on the West Coast and traversed the width of the South Island, crossing the main divide and finishing on the East Coast with the finish at New Brighton Beach, Christchurch.

Simone was on the brink of making history as she chased her sixth victory in the women's category, which would’ve made her the first woman to secure six titles, surpassing the legendary Kathy Lynch (Motueka).

She placed second to Deb Lynch (Porirua), at 13:10:30 just four minutes behind Deb’s 13:06:11.

“It was fantastic,” Simone said.

“It’s second place but I wanted to race, and I did say whoever beats me deserves it, and, today, Debbie had an amazing race.”

Hamish, the defending men's champion, claimed his first title in 2024 with a remarkable time of 10 hours, 48 minutes, and 53 seconds.  

This year he placed second (11:33:47) to Tasmanian Alex Hunt, just four minutes behind the Australian’s time of 11:29:20.

Find a full list of results here.

PHOTOS: Supplied