Parkrun reaches millionth event milestone in Bushy Park
10 reported
The millionth parkrun took place on Saturday in Bushy Park, west London, marking a milestone for the free weekly 5km event that began in October 2004. The event was attended by former Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes, thousands of locals, and parkrun enthusiasts. Parkrun’s global chief executive, Elizabeth Duggan, described the organization as a rare organic social movement that grew from person to person without large marketing costs. The event, founded by Paul-Sinton Hewitt, started with five volunteers and 13 runners and now operates at 2,800 locations worldwide with more than 12 million registered participants. Parkrun is entirely volunteer-run at the local level and has become part of public health policy, with over 2,100 GP surgeries in the UK prescribing it to patients. The charity aims to increase participation among lower socioeconomic groups and ethnic minorities, who are statistically more likely to be inactive.
What’s reported
The millionth parkrun occurred on Saturday in Bushy Park, west London.
Former Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes attended the event.
Parkrun’s global chief executive is Elizabeth Duggan.
The event was founded by Paul-Sinton Hewitt in October 2004 with five volunteers and 13 runners.
Parkrun now operates at 2,800 locations worldwide with more than 12 million registered participants.
Over 2,100 GP surgeries in the UK prescribe parkrun to patients as part of social prescribing schemes.
About one in five participants describe themselves as inactive when they first sign up.
Almost a third of participants come from lower socioeconomic groups.
The fastest recorded times are 13 minutes 44 seconds for men and 15 minutes 13 seconds for women, both set in Belfast.
About 25 prisons and young offender institutions host parkruns, involving more than 12,000 people in custody.
Key figures
Dame Kelly Holmes: former Olympic champion
Elizabeth Duggan: parkrun’s global chief executive
Paul-Sinton Hewitt: founder of parkrun
Alistair Brownlee: mentioned as a participant
Ed Miliband: mentioned as a participant
Keith Flint: late member of the Prodigy, mentioned as a participant
Sources: The Guardian
