THE BIG HALF RETURNS: LONDON’S MOST VIBRANT COMMUNITY RUNNING FESTIVAL
25,000 people registered to take part across sold-out festival of running this Sunday [7 September] The Big Half is the UK’s most diverse half marathon and a unique celebration of the communities of London The Big Half returns to London on Sunday [7 September] with 25,000 people registered to take part in the UK’s most vibrant and diverse community running festival. Now in its eighth year, The Big Half was created to not only showcase the rich and varied communities that make up London, but to be an event that is truly for the people of those communities. Aware the cost of entering mass participation events can be a barrier to taking part for many, The Big Half has pioneered the use of discounted community group entries to encourage a wider diversity of people taking part in the event. This year, 280 community groups from across London have places in The Big Half, from groups such as Emancipated Run Crew, ASRA and Black Girls Do Run, which have been part of the event from the outset, to new groups such as Overtime Club, Rocup and Tom’s Run Club.It is not just participants that are drawn from the capital’s communities, there are community groups and local school cheer zones lined along the route, as well as musical groups who will play to keep participants entertained. One of the community groups, The Coopah Refugee Run Club, has also designed The Big Half finisher’s medal and T-shirt. Sanaa Qureshi, Senior Community Engagement Manager at London Marathon Events (organiser of The Big Half), said: “The Big Half is not your typical mass participation event, it was created to make a positive impact on communities by both celebrating the richness and variety of cultures in our communities, and to make a genuine difference to local people by giving them opportunities to be part of this incredible event. We know there is still significant inequity in access to mass participation events, and sport and physical activity as a whole, which London Marathon Events is committed to tackling and events like The Big Half is a huge part of this.” ABOUT THE BIG HALF 2025 The main event of The Big Half is the half marathon which starts close to Tower Bridge and finishes at the Cutty Sark in Greenwich. More than 23,000 people have registered to take on the 13.1-mile challenge which will start with the elite wheelchair races at 08:25. Five minutes later, at 08:30, the elite men and women will set off with the thousands of mass runners behind them. The festival of running will also include The New Balance Big Relay, which encourages groups of up to four people to break down the half marathon distance together, and The Big Mile, a family-friendly run for all ages that also finishes at the Cutty Sark. A festival area will run in Greenwich Park throughout the day, which is free and open to everyone. It will include food and drink vendors, entertainment, a multi-faith prayer space and sensory calm zone, plus a stall from Kitround, which sells pre-loved sports kit and clothing at a reduced price (with a focus on providing sports kit for young people and children as they return to school) and a JogOn collection point where people can donate unwanted or unused running shoes. Scheduled industrial action by members of the RMT union means all London Underground services are set to be suspended on Event Day. Participants and spectators are being encouraged to use tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey and nationalrail.co.uk to plan their Event Day journeys. JACK ROWE AIMING TO MATCH SIR MO FARAH’S RECORD Reigning champion Jack Rowe is trying to emulate the great Sir Mo Farah by winning The Big Half for the third time after wins in 2023 and 2024, while in the elite women’s race, Jessica Warner-Judd and Samatha Harrison, the fourth and fifth-fastest British female half-marathoners of all time, will go head-to-head. The elite wheelchair races will be spearheaded by British stars David Weir and Eden Rainbow-Cooper, fresh off her second place at the TCS Sydney Marathon last weekend.For more information on the elite races, click here. FUNDRAISING AND CELEBRITY STORIES The mass event will include all the community group runners as well as thousands of people running to raise money for charity. Among them are two Chloes who are each tackling their first half marathon for causes very close to their hearts.Chloe Kirby, 25, from Birmingham, is taking on the challenge to raise money for the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) for her son Blake, five, who was diagnosed with optic nerve hypoplasia and nystagmus at just 11 weeks old, while Chloe Hooper, from Rayleigh, Essex, was told as a child that she would never walk again after breaking her back aged 12, but is now running her first half marathon for the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Charity (RNOH) which helped her recover. For more on their stories, as well as other fundraising stories, click here. Among the masses taking part will be a collection of famous faces including Magic FM co-hosts Harriet Scott and Harry Judd. The pair will be raising funds for the station’s charity – Cash for Kids.  MEDIA ACCREDITATION AND ON-THE-DAY RESOURCES To apply for media accreditation for The Big Half please complete the following form by no later than Friday 29 August – https://wkf.ms/3H5DNz3. Confirmation of media accreditation will be sent out no later than Wednesday 3 September. The Big Half media team will supply the following free-to-use resources for media on Event Day: Imagery Broadcast-quality video content including post-race interviews and B-roll Flash quotes (from elite athletes, celebrities and charity runners) There will also be a live stream of the Finish Line throughout the day on the London Marathon Events YouTube channel. To sign up to receive content, please email media@londonmarathonevents.co.uk  ENDS 
NOTES TO EDITORSAbout The Big HalfThe Big Half is a world-class mass participation event, organised by London Marathon Events, over the half marathon distance (13.1 miles)The community event was first held in 2018 and takes place in four London boroughs: Greenwich, Lewisham, Southwark and Tower Hamlets.The Big Half is also a campaign called #WeRunAsOne. This unique event will demonstrate how sport and community can come together to inspire social change, create social cohesion and improve health and wellbeing. Find out more at thebighalf.co.ukLondon Marathon Events Ltd, organisers of The Big Half, gifts its surplus each year to The London Marathon Foundation (the operating name of The London Marathon Charitable Trust, a registered charity (283813) and a company limited by guarantee registered in England & Wales (01550741), registered office: 190 Great Dover Street, London, EYB).Since 1981, The London Marathon Foundation has awarded grants totalling in excess of £112 million to more than 1,700 projects in London, Essex and across the UK.London Marathon Foundation has given more than £18.5 million over 380 projects that promote the health and wellbeing of residents in Greenwich, Lewisham, Southwark and Tower Hamlets. These grants have funded a variety of projects, meaning that residents can benefit from a range of activities from trying out the London Marathon Playing Field in Greenwich, playing cricket at Catford Wanderers Sports Club in Lewisham, enjoying a free game of table tennis at Marlborough Sports Garden in Southwark, or trying out cycling with Chrisp Street Community Cycles in Tower Hamlets. For further information, please contact:
Lianne Hogan | Senior Communications Manager | London Marathon Events Ltde lianne.hogan@londonmarathonevents.co.uk | m +44 (0) 7921 465111