parkrun

Why this mattersparkruns are for everyone but can be particularly valuable for sedentary people who would not feel confident or capable enough to participate in a normal running events. We do this by removing barriers to participation. Events are free as not everyone can afford to pay entry fees, events are in local parks as not everyone has access to private transport. Some people doubt their ability to run 5K so at parkrun you can run, walk, jog, push a buggy or walk the dog. Finally people feel scared to take that first step so all parkruns are friendly and welcoming with a social aspect post run in a local cafe.The backgroundThe concept was created by Paul Sinton-Hewitt in 2004 when as a runner he was injured and wanted to stay in touch with his training partners so he started a weekly time trial. From that beginning the concept grew and developed its own characteristics which was a community managed recreational run attracting people who wanted to exercise and socialise as part of a local community. Since then it has spread all through the UK and then to 22 other countries globally including Ireland. There are now over 2000 events worldwide running over 300,000 people weekly.