The Manx Telecom Parish Walk looks like being a three-horse race between two previous winners and a relative new name this weekend.

Entries for the event are as healthy as ever with total numbers well in excess of 1,500.

It is likely that between 1,350 and 1,400 will make the start at 8am on Saturday morning in the centre of the National Sports Centre.

Last year was, to some extent, a case of out with the old and in with the new when Liam Parker became the youngest winner for nigh on a quarter of a century.

The Ramsey man is back this weekend and could well make it two wins in a row, but admits that his training has been disrupted by illness in recent weeks.

Four-time winner Richard Gerrard still has some back problems, but hopefully he will be fit and up for the challenge this time.

One of their biggest threats looked like being Karen Chiarello, runner-up to Parker last year, but it now looks likely that she will stop at Peel to save herself for the 100-mile event at the NSC in mid-August.

Adam Killip is also likely to do the same.He is using the Parish as a recovery spin from his season’s goal - becoming a Continental Centurion. He achieved that four weeks ago, when he was only 35 seconds outside of a podium place.

Regular top-10 finishers, Dave Walker and Robbie Callister, are unlikely to be going full gas. Walker will be downfield accompanying a friend, while Callister is nursing a collarbone injury from a recent fall.

The diminutive David Mapp is unfortunately a non-starter. Unbeaten in his three island appearances this year, he has been encouraged to concentrate on the standard international distances, at least in the short term.

The dark-horse could well be Peter Miller, who joined Chiarello, Killip and Mapp in the Graham and Martin Young stable six months ago. According to Graham Young, Miller has shown significant improvement, technically, and in fitness, in the ensuing period.

Last year he collected the award for the most improved finisher in the Parish Walk and recently Manx Harriers awarded him the trophy for their most improved athlete of the last year.

Add into the equation the likes of Michael Bonney, Karen Lawrie (who had a wonderful walk last year), James Quirk and the scene is set for a real cracker.

Other females likely to feature strongly include Bernie Johnson, Jane Foster, Jane Mooney, Maureen Moffatt and Suzannah Corkill.

Next week’s Isle of Man Examiner will carry initial reports on the event, with a special eight-page supplement in next week’s Manx Independent, with full results and interviews.

Road users are reminded to be aware of walkers throughout the 85-mile route, but in particular through the hours of darkness in the northern sections round Lezayre (where road diversions will be in place), Maughold and Lonan.