This weekend on Sunday 8th September 2024, sees the 43rd Great North Run and Junior Great North Run, the largest half marathon in the world. Sponsored by AJ Bell, the run is a 13.1-mile route which starts in Newcastle and ends in South Shields. For many years, Week2Week has had the privilege of providing accommodation to many of the runners.
The inspiration for the run came from local lad Brendan Foster, a former 10,000 Olympic Bronze medallist and BBC Sport commentator originally from Hebburn. It started as a local fun run with 12,000 participants and it now has nearly 60,000 participants with over 1 million people having completed the race.
The route sees runners pass across the iconic Tyne Bridge, run through the borough of Gateshead and onto the beautiful coastline of South Shields where they run to victory with the sounds of seagulls, the smell of salty sea air and the roar of the crowd.
The North East will be buzzing this weekend with excitement, pride and the sound of thousands of feet following in the footsteps of some of the most elite athletes from around the world and a whole host of famous participants.
At the heart of the Great North Run, is the thousands of participants each year that raise thousands of pounds for an array of charities, often running for charities that have supported loved ones. The spectators are not only proud Geordies but families of the runners that travel far and wide to support their friends and family taking part in this fantastic event.
It is always a real pleasure to see the swarms of spectators giving out water and oranges for the runners, with people from our local community rallying together to support people that literally pass them in a flash, never to be seen again. That one little act of kindness, something so simple from a stranger, provides the runners with the motivation to keep going on their long and gruelling journey. As a spectator for many years, it’s amazing to see the fantastic runners proudly showing their cause on their t-shirts, this alone makes me exhausted just watching them! For me, the thing that is most amazing is watching people running 13.1 miles in fancy dress!! If you think you have seen it all, I can bet you that you haven’t!
Did you know there was one participant that used to run with a fridge on his back. The run also had the 102-year-old Bill Cooksey Walk the marathon in just 5 hours and 41 minutes!
One thing to take into consideration is the numerous road closures over the weekend. This is so the wonderful teams of organisers can prepare the routes for the pitter patter of tiny feet for the junior run on Saturday 7th which starts on the Quayside and for the main event itself on Sunday 8th September. For more information click here: AJ Bell Great North Run | 8 September 2024 (greatrun.org)
