ADAM Hickey smashed his 10km personal best at the Brighton 10k on Sunday and soared up the national rankings in the process.

The 26-year-old Southend AC athlete finished second in a top-class race that saw the first nine athletes all dip inside 30 minutes.

Hickey’s time of 29m 18s was no less than 35 seconds quicker than his previous best which was set on the same course 12 months earlier.

The Seasider – whose time was the second fastest time in the UK this year – was beaten by his Great Britain cross-country international team-mate Jonny Taylor by six seconds, while another GB international, Callum Hawkins, was a second behind Hickey in third.

Hickey was not the only Southend AC athlete in action on the south coast with Paul Whittaker also running well to finish 12th in 30m 48s.

Whittaker is in training for the marathon.

He tweeted: “Can't expct anything more during marathon training. Looking forward to tapering well soon!”

Basildon AC’s Grant Webb was 29th in 34m 49s.