With less than eight weeks to go before thousands of runners take to the starting line for the 21st Bristol Half Marathon, final preparations are being made to ensure it is a race to remember.

The 14,500 entrants to date include athletes from as a far away as India, Japan and The Gambia, local celebrities, and thousands of novice runners taking part in their first half marathon.

The flat course, bringing fast times for elite runners is being seen as a warm-up for many for the World Half Marathon, held in October in Birmingham.

Runners will start off in two waves with the faster runners heading off first, and the slower half of the field starting around 45 minutes later. Runners will receive details of their start times nearer the race, which starts at 9.30am on Sunday, September 6.

There will be a rolling programme of road closures starting from Anchor Road at 3am on race day, please see the map opposite for details of the route, road closures and travel information.

Diversions will be in place to keep disruption to a minimum and to allow motorists access to the city.

Motorists and residents also need to be aware that tow-away schemes will be in operation throughout the day to keep the roads clear. All roads should be reopened by 5pm.

As well as the action of the half marathon, events and extra competitions will be taking place over the race weekend. On Saturday, September 5, Sports JAM, an action-packed fun day, will give youngsters aged six to 19 the chance to have a go at lots of different sports. The free event takes place in Millennium Square from noon to 4pm with Project 360 zone, focusing on urban sports such as BMX and parkour taking place on the Amphitheatre.

The sixth year of Mile races, a series for under 11s to seniors will also take place on Saturday on the paved walkaways around College Green.

And for runners hoping for even more of a challenge on the Sunday, Everyone Active, an initiative of SLM leisure centres, are sponsoring the business challenge, designed to encourage businesses to raise money for charity while competing to be the winner of a number of categories including fastest team, man, woman, veteran and the team with the most sponsorship.

The Evening Post have been following novice runners Sarah Johnson and Marcus Cashin, who live in Cotham. The pair have been training since May, competing to be the first to cross the finish line and to see who will raise the most funds for their chosen charities Bristol-based St Peter's Hospice and Cancer charity CLIC Sargent.

Sarah, a personal assistant who is due to turn 30 next week, said: "Things are going really well with our training. We have been aiming to go out at least three times a week and each run has been around two miles, we are now going to be heading out for runs on the weekends as we will have more time to add more miles.

"We are mixing up our training by doing circuit training, yoga, and we will be starting boxercise soon, we are also aiming to start doing early morning swimming."

The couple went to a training camp and have teamed up with running expert Nick Rose to help find inspiration and motivation to get them around the course.

Sarah said: "We went to a training camp on June 23 and I personally found Tracey Morris a real inspiration as she told the group her story of how she got started and her progression with running. The camp gave us a chance to extend our run and run in a different environment. The run started at Coombe Dingle and then we headed towards Blaise Castle via a pathway which was through a wooded area.

"The day we had the workshop was a hot one so the run pushed you mentally to keep going, especially with the hill incline we faced.

"We are both feeling nervous at the moment, I think it's the thought of doing 13 miles. But we are really focused on doing well."

Places are still available for the weekend training camp held at Henbury Leisure Centre on July 18 and 19. The UK's top athletes will be attending to help all runners improve their technique and get in shape for race day.

Hundreds of volunteers are needed to help marshal the 2009 Bristol Half Marathon.

The call for 400 volunteers has been made by event organisers Bristol City Council, St Peter's Hospice and CLIC Sargent who hope local people will come forward and help make the event a huge success.

Volunteers are needed from 8am, for a briefing before the race, up until approximately 2pm on race day.

They must be aged over 18 – although organisers are interested to hear from organised groups of younger people.

Marshalling the route, keeping access points clear, helping and directing spectators to viewing points and handing out bottles of water, medals and goodie bags to runners are among the many tasks volunteers are asked to cover.

Race director Georgette Van Hoof said: "Volunteers are always needed in order to make sure the race day is a success. Without local support the Bristol Half Marathon simply couldn't happen.

"We are asking volunteers to work with our official charities, which means not only supporting the half marathon – but also supporting the work of St Peter's Hospice and CLIC Sargent . We want to make sure this year's half marathon is the best yet."

John Flanagan, community fundraising manager for St Peter's Hospice said "If you're not feeling energetic enough to run the half marathon but still want to help us, please consider acting as a marshal instead. St Peter's Hospice is an established and much-loved part of Bristol – last year alone, we provided palliative care to 2,015 patients and bereavement and grief support to over 6,000 family members, including children free of charge.

"Many people will be running in memory of a close relative, friend or colleague and collecting sponsorship for us but for those that aren't we hope they are able to give up a morning and be part of the most popular sporting events in Bristol. "

To volunteer, call Anna Cairns on 0117 915 9300 to register your interest.

People wanting to take part in this year's Bristol Half Marathon still have a chance to run.

Charities are given a number of places each year and are constantly on the look-out for runners to raise funds for them.

Official race charities this year are Bristol-based St Peter's Hospice, national charity CLIC Sargent and Coco, a charity founded by Olympic legend Steve Cram to provide education and healthcare initiatives for children living in poverty throughout the developing world.

Kirsty McLatchie, running events manager for CLIC Sargent, said: "There is still plenty of time before the event to train and we would encourage anyone who is thinking about taking part or who has already secured their own place to come forward and run for us too.

"If you join the CLIC Sargent running team we can offer fundraising support and advice, essential training tips and newsletters to keep you up to date with the latest race information in the lead-up to the big day.

"It is also a great motivator to achieve a personal goal knowing that all the money you raise will help families whose lives have been turned upside-down by childhood cancer.

"If you don't fancy the 13-mile challenge but would still like to support CLIC Sargent, we are also keen to enlist the help of marshals to man the route on the day."

Contact Rachael Eyre on 0845 602 4770.

For more information visit Bristol Half Marathon