Lifestyle

Return of the Great Eastern Run

Great Eastern Run 2014 Start of the Half Marathon

Are you one of the many who caught the running bug during the pandemic? Or is it time to lose the pounds gained during lockdown? Celebrate the return of the Great Eastern Run to the streets of Peterborough and get your entry in now for the first Great Eastern Run in three years.

Like so many other great outdoor events, the run was affected by the pandemic, but is now under new management and promises to be bigger and better than ever. The half marathon and 5K fun run events will both return on October 16 and will be organised by Good Running Events for the first time.

Good Running Events has brought many running events to the East Anglia race calendar, including the popular ‘Run Sandringham’ series and ‘Run4Colour East Anglia’. Good Running Events will now be looking after the much-anticipated return of the Great Eastern Run going forwards.

Cabinet Advisor for Housing, Culture, and Communities, Councillor John Howard says: ‘As a runner of the Great Eastern myself, I know how loved this event is in our city and beyond. A lot of effort has gone into seeing the race return for 2022, and equally important was to ensure we had an organiser which has the experience and contacts that will allow the event to grow and expand in the years ahead.

‘We are delighted to have a passionate and enthusiastic organiser in Good Running Events, and we look forward to working with them. The Great Eastern Run will bring runners and spectators to our city for this headline event and help local charities with runners who seek sponsorship.

‘Whether as a runner, spectator, or local business, we urge everyone in our city to get out and support the return of the Great Eastern Run this October.’

Director of Good Running Events, Aaron Murrell, says ‘We cannot wait to bring the Great Eastern Run back to the streets of Peterborough in 2022. We are keen runners ourselves and have taken part in the Great Eastern Run previously, and so are aware of how well it has been organised and supported locally in previous years. We look forward to taking the reins of this prestigious, well supported event going forwards, and bringing it back to the race calendar this October.

‘As organisers, we are passionate about creating a positive, long lasting running event experience for our participants, and look forward to seeing the thousands of runners return to the streets of Peterborough city centre this autumn.

‘Before the pandemic the Great Eastern Run was growing year on year and is an event that the people of Peterborough always get behind, so expect hundreds of spectators to line the course and cheer you on your way!’

The Great Eastern Run is a flat course, running through the historic city centre of Peterborough, and is ideal for beating your personal best time.

Good Running Events is delighted to announce that local charity Anna’s Hope will continue to be the charity partner of the 5K Fun Run at the Great Eastern Run. Working together to grow the 5K Fun Run at the event, which is the starting event at the Great Eastern Run, alongside the Wheelchair Half Marathon and the Half Marathon following afterwards.

Aaron Murrell commented: “I’m thrilled that we are going to be working with Anna’s Hope as the official charity partner of the 5K Fun Run at the Great Eastern Run, and we cannot wait to see all of the fundraisers in action on 16th October 2022. We are aware of Anna’s Hope’s long-standing involvement in the Great Eastern Run in previous years, and we are looking forward to continuing that work with the charity going forwards, and raising awareness of the charity as much as possible, and supporting their vital work”.

Co-founder of Anna’s Hope Carole Hughes said “I am delighted that the Great Eastern Run is returning to Peterborough and that the Anna’s Hope 5K Fun Run will also be back. Over the years Anna’s Hope has been proud to support the 5K Fun Run and we are looking forward once again to welcoming runners from the local community including families, friends, schools, clubs and local businesses to challenge themselves, have fun and if they can, raise funds for charities and good causes.”

The Great Eastern Run: A Potted History

The GER was first held in 1982 as a half marathon only and ran under this format until 1996 when the half marathon was dropped and replaced by two different events – a 10km run around the East of England Showground, and a shorter run known as the ‘Arthur Bowden 5.’

In 2006 the half marathon was revived and relaunched and attracted over 3,000 runners and a prize fund of £11,000. The event went from strength to strength after that and regularly attracted over 4,000 runners and over 10,000 spectators before a bomb scare led to the cancellation of
the 2019 event and then the Coronavirus pandemic meant the run could not be held in 2020 or 2021.

● To register for this year’s half marathon and 5K fun run visit www.greateasternrun

FIVE MINUTES WITH AARON MURRELL…

Aaron Murrell is the director of Good Running Events, which currently organises seven runs all over East Anglia.

Will there be any changes to the format of the run this year?
No, not this year. The Great Eastern Run has been a great success in the past, and obviously we want to keep all the great elements that have made the event so popular.

How many entries do you expect to receive?
It’s early days at the moment, but we’ve had a great response so far, for both the fun run and the half marathon. But we want to see thousands of runners out there and hope to grow the event even more in years to come.

What makes the Great Eastern Run such a good event to take part in?
It’s all the various elements. It’s obviously really popular with runners, and it’s fantastically supported by the volunteers and the spectators. It’s great for local businesses as well, so everyone really gets involved.

Is Good Running Events hoping to grow the run year on year?
Yes, we’re in this for the long term and we have some great ideas that we’d like to bring to the event. We want to see it grow.

Do you think people will be keener than ever to take part after spending so much time on the sofa during lockdown?
Around one million people took up running during lockdown, so we’re hopeful for a really positive response.

What would you say to anyone who’s considering taking part but hasn’t quite decided yet?
I would say don’t hesitate! Get yourself signed up – get in there while the entries are available. It’s such a fantastic experience for everyone who takes part.

Words: Stuart Barker

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