60 junior times removed

Regretably, 60 junior entrants who particpated in the Great Midlands Fun Run on Sunday 1 June, will not be viewing their finish times when they are published on Friday as they assembled and started from the adult area.

Despite clear, written instructions in the newsletter sent in the information pack, and repeated requests over the PA system in the town centre prior to the start of the event, 60 juniors chose to assemble and start from the adult area.

Event Director, Tracey Spare said:"The same assembly system has been adopted every year, yet some juniors chose to ignore our instructions and put themselves and others at greater risk.

"The event is not a race and with the introduction of chip timing this year, every person was going to receive an accurate time for their run, jog or walk from the start to the finish line regardless of how long they took to cross the start line. There was no need to assemble and start with the adults.

"I'm disappointed to remove their times from the official results and hope they will learn from their error.

"Separate assembly/start areas have always operated for safety reasons. It would be parents and guardians who'd be first to crticise us if their son or daughter was seriously injured or worse because a junior slipped or fell at the start and was crushed under the feet of thousands of adults.

"We will assess the situation over the coming weeks to decide how we move forward for next year. One option maybe to set a minimum entry age limit of 15 which would eliminate so many who enjoy the day.

"I will write to each of the juniors over the coming week to explain the reasons behind the decision to remove their times from the results and stress to them why it is so important they follow the instructions on where to assemble. Safety has to be paramount."