Great Manchester Run 2015: Route, Course Map, Times, Event Details

Manchester's city centre will be awash with runners on Sunday as the 13th annual staging of the city's Great Run takes place.

Europe's biggest 10k running event will see 40,000 people taking part, creating a jubilant atmosphere in the city.

The course takes in some of Manchester's iconic landmarks, such as Old Trafford and the Lowry, as elite runners join those running for charity and pleasure.

Read on for all of the details ahead of Sunday's race, including the route, course map and essential timings for all runners.

Time (BST)	Event
10:55 a.m.	Start of the Great Manchester Run Elite Wheelchair Race
11:15 a.m.	Start of the Great Manchester Run Elite Women Race
11:37 a.m.	Start of the Great Manchester Run Elite Men's Race and the Orange wave
11:55 a.m.	Start of the White wave
12:25 a.m.	Start of the Blue wave
13:10 a.m.	Start of the Green wave
13:30 a.m.	Start of the Pink wave

For the full route and course map, courtesy of the event's official website, click here.

The Return of Haile

The legendary Haile Gebrselassie, Ethiopia's two-time 10,000-metre Olympic gold medallist, will be looking for his sixth victory at the Great Manchester Run on Sunday.

His last triumph was in 2012, as can be seen in the video below, and he came third in the 2013 edition:

Now 42, not only is Gebrselassie looking to win for a seventh time in the north-west, but he plans to go around again once he is done with the elite runners, per the Manchester Evening News' Andy Buckley:

"

Manchester is one of my favourite cities in the world to race in. The atmosphere, the people and the organisation are all fantastic. This time after I have competed in the elite race on May the 10th I am going to jog round the 10k again with another wave of runners. It will be a unique experience for me and I look forward to meeting some of those who have cheered me on before.

"

It will no doubt add hugely to the atmosphere to have one of the all-time greats of distance running taking part with the masses.

Gebrselassie has a challenge on his hands to win the elite race, though, with Kenyan duo Wilson Kipsang and Leonard Komon sure to set a breathless pace.

Sang Tan/Associated Press

USA's Bernard Lagat, 40, will also be competing in the men's elite race, his 10k road-race debut, after his immense 2015 indoor season in the over-40s masters, per IAAF.

In the women's elite race, Team Great Britain darling and European 10,000m gold medallist Jo Pavey is sure to be the headline attraction.

Pavey won at the event in 2007 and 2008 and is clearly thrilled to be heading for Manchester's roads, per Helen Earnshaw of Female First:

"

I am really excited about the prospect of competing in such an exciting race; I have great memories of competing in the Great Manchester Run. It's such a great event, to be able to run with 40,000 runners and it's a great atmosphere, with the Manchester public really getting behind the race. It's an exciting course too, nice and fast and flat, with iconic landmarks like Old Trafford and it's just fantastic, very inspirational with being running for their different charities.

"

The 41-year-old recently withdrew from August's world championships in Beijing, citing preparations for the 2016 Olympics, and Sunday will be a good indication of how she is faring:

Joining Pavey in the women's race, among others, will be 2014 London Marathon winner Edna Kiplagat of Kenya and two-time 5,000m Olympic gold medallist Meseret Defar of Ethiopia.

The Great Manchester Run is a very high-profile event in the running world, attracting some of the very best around for its elite races.

Paralympic legend David Weir will be competing in the wheelchair race, just two weeks on from missing out on a record-breaking seventh London Marathon win after losing a sprint finish to American Joshua George.

Along with legends of the sport, tens of thousands of amateur runners will tread the streets of Manchester, running for charity or pleasure, while some will be looking to beat personal-best times or simply just to finish.

It is set to be a very fine occasion on Sunday, as the masses follow the elite few for one of Europe's biggest running events.