THE Digicel 5K Imagine Run saw over 10,600 participants running for special needs, a vast increase over the 8,052 entrants in last year’s staging.

This year’s run winners were Danielle James of GC Foster College with a time of 19:55 minutes and Kirk Brown with 16:04.

Both James and Brown are no strangers to the winner’s podium of the event as James placed first in the 2013 staging, while Brown was second the same year.

Meanwhile, the other fast finishers were Tanice Barnes and Crystal Brown in the female category with times of 20:17 and 20:43 minutes, respectively. For the males, Oshane Archibald (16:25 minutes) and Dwayne Graham (16:44) placed second and third.

In the wheelchair category, Sheldon Cox, who has represented Jamaica at the World Wheelchair Basketball Championships in the past, was first through with a time of 22:18 minutes, while Paralympian Silvia Grant clocked 28:18 minutes in the female category.

Second and third place females were Cherry White (32:32 minutes) and Vinnette Green (32:45). Their male counterparts were Marcus Banton (29:42 minutes) and Joel Brown (30:22).

“Seeing the thousands of individuals lined up at the start line this year was heart-warming, humbling and very encouraging for us,” said David Butler, CEO for Digicel Jamaica. “Tonight’s turnout shows what a community can achieve when it comes together for a worthy cause.”

The fourth staging of the event was in aid of 12 special needs beneficiaries namely the Jamaica Autism Support Association (JASA), Early Stimulation Plus (ESP), Genesis Academy, Jamaica Down’s Syndrome Foundation, The STEP Centre, Liberty Academy, Jamaica Association for the Deaf, Jamaica Association on Intellectual Disabilities (JAID), Jamaica Society for the Blind, Mustard Seed Communities (Jacob’s Ladder), Naz Children’s Centre, and Special Olympics Jamaica (SOJ).