Press Releases

Perkins Great Eastern Run cancelled for 2020

Posted by Super User on Monday, 20 April 2020 in Press Releases

Peterborough City Council has made the difficult decision to cancel one of the highlights of the city's events calendar - the Perkins Great Eastern Run - because of the ongoing disruption caused by the Coronavirus outbreak.

The launch of this year's race was due to take place in March, around the same time the country was being asked by the Government to socially isolate.

Since then the city council has been in discussion with Vivacity, which is taking over the management of the race, and the main sponsor, Perkins Engines, about whether a race would be viable this year.

With the continued uncertainty about when the social distancing measures will be lifted, the city council has decided to cancel this year's race, usually held in October.

Councillor Steve Allen, cabinet member for housing, culture and recreation for Peterborough City Council, said: "This has been a really tough decision to make as we know it will be disappointing for lots of people and also the many charities that benefit from the event.

"That said, it is the right decision, given the fact we do not know what the next six months will bring and how long the country will be asked to socially distance to limit the spread of the Coronavirus.

"In addition, an event such as the Perkins Great Eastern Run takes many months of planning which would be well underway by now. Many of the suppliers we use are also temporarily closed.

"We hope that all of our amazing runners, running clubs, businesses and residents will understand this decision and get behind the 2021 event to help the event bounce back and make it one of the biggest and best we have seen for many years."

Last month the council announced that it would be passing control of the management of the race across to the city's cultural and leisure trust, Vivacity.

The council wants to be able to grow the race and attract additional sponsorship and it believes that Vivacity is best placed to do this with its links with the culture and leisure sector and knowledge.

The council will continue to support the event in a number of ways including managing the necessary road closures and leading on the public safety aspects. Perkins Engines will continue as the main sponsor in 2021.

Half marathon cancellation update

Posted by Super User on Monday, 21 October 2019 in Press Releases

Dear runner, Cancelling this year's Perkins Great Eastern Run half marathon was something we never thought we'd have to do, but as I know you will appreciate, your safety comes first and it was the right decision.

Just before the start of the half marathon our police colleagues were notified of a man acting suspiciously on one part of the route.

The information received was considered serious enough for us to delay the start of the race whilst the police thoroughly investigated the matter. It was hoped we could get the race underway by 10.45am but as we approached 11am (half an hour after the half marathon was due to start) we had to make the decision to cancel the race based on the information available to us.

During this time the police launched a major firearms response and after a comprehensive investigation into the matter it was determined that the witness who reported the incident, whilst acting in good faith, misinterpreted what was seen.

Whilst I know the cancellation of the race was frustrating for all concerned, public safety must take priority.

In regard to your entry fee and any additional items purchased when making your entry, a refund will be issued to the bank card you used within the next three weeks.

Your refund payment is being made by Active (the race's entry system provider) once we release the funds back to them next week. Active have advised us that your entry fee and processing fee (what you paid them at the point of checkout) will be refunded to you in one transaction.

This is a manual process that will be checked by Active, so if they accidentally miss the processing fee, they will send it as a separate refund.

We did explore the option of transferring your entry fee to next year's event as an alternative to a refund. Doing this, however, will be a difficult administrative task, so we have decided to offer a refund only, which enables the process to be more efficient for everyone involved.

If you have not received your full refund within the next three weeks, please email support@active.com

I, together with members of the organising team, thank you for your understanding and we look forward to welcoming you back for next year's event.

Yours sincerely

Jon Marsden

Race Director, Perkins Great Eastern Run

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Runners invited to free training sessions

Posted by Super User on Tuesday, 25 June 2019 in Press Releases

Runners can get advice from experienced racers and coaches at a series of free training sessions in the build up to this year's Perkins Great Eastern Run.

The sessions take place fortnightly on Wednesday evenings at Peterborough Embankment Athletics Track in Bishops Road.

The first session takes place on July 10 with the events held up until October 2. Each session starts with a warm-up at 7pm and will last around an hour.

Runners can meet seasoned competitors who will be acting as pacers to help entrants achieve personal best times in the race which takes place on Sunday, October 13.

Councillor Steve Allen, Peterborough City Council’s cabinet member for recreation, said: "Running is becoming more and more popular in Peterborough as witnessed by the recent Sunrise 5K event which attracted over 200 participants, as well as our previous free lunchtime sessions which were well attended.

"These sessions are a great way to get in shape for the Great Eastern Run and get advice on how to prepare for the big day. They are led by some of the best coaches in the region and are suitable for people of all levels of fitness and experience with runners split into groups to reflect their ability."

Runners do not have to be signed up to the Perkins Great Eastern Run to take part in the sessions, you could be considering taking part or just want some running advice.

Target times for pacers will range from finishing the race in just under 90 minutes, to up to three hours which is the race limit.

Representatives from the charity Anna's Hope will be on hand at the first session for anyone who wants to find out about the 5K Fun Run event.

Visit www.perkinsgreateasternrun.co.uk for more information about pacers, target times and the free training sessions. Entries to the half marathon and Fun Run.

Follow the latest Perkins Great Eastern Run developments on Twitter @PerkinsGER, Facebook www.facebook.com/ThePerkinsGreatEasternRun and Instagram @perkinsgreateasternrun.