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Great North Run 81

Run Back In Time

Turn the clock back 40 years and be a part of the inaugural Great North Run…

It feels like everyone I know is turning 40 at the moment… The ’geriatric millennial’ generation (as we’ve been dubbed) is approaching the milestone that to some feels more like a millstone! But we’re in good company as one of the country’s top events is also magnificently middle aged!  

On 28 June 1981, 12,264 people lined up in Newcastle for the first Great North Run – it was the start of something special. 40 years on, the event has grown into a landmark event on the sporting calendar and earned the title of the world’s biggest half marathon.

To celebrate Great North Run’s 40th Birthday, the event’s organisers have created a unique virtual running challenge encouraging people to travel back in time and take part in the original Great North Run. The GNR81 challenge is to complete the iconic 13.1 mile distance anytime between 26 – 28 June, wherever you are in the world! You can choose to complete the full distance in one go, or break it up into separate runs.

To bring the 1981 theme to life runners can wear a recreation of the original race number, purchase the original finisher’s t-shirt and medal, listen to a special GNR classic 80s playlist and follow the original route map. You can also go online and enjoy a series of assets from the first staging including interviews with the original race organisers, a recreation of the original runners’ guide and take a look at the archive photo gallery.

To ensure everyone can be part of this retro running adventure, GNR81 is FREE to enter. Enter now to secure your place in GNR81, it really is a run for the ages. 

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