“It’s going to be emotional” - Sir Brendan Foster on the race day he feared might not happen

Before the pandemic the idea of cancelling the Great North Run was unthinkable to Sir Brendan Foster and his team at the Great Run company.

For 39 years the event had gone from strength-to-strength and had long held the title of the biggest half marathon in the world.

But when Covid hit, the unthinkable happened for the team.

Sir Brendan said: “The last 18 months has been by far the toughest in the 40-year history of the event.

“The Great North Run was growing, people knew how to take part, the route was set in stone, cancelling or changing the route had never crossed our mind.”

From March to December of 2020 organisers were left thinking it could be years before the event would be able to return.

“In December we had no idea that the GNR could go ahead. From March to December 2020 when there was no vaccine, the experts thought it would be years before things could go back to normal and we thought there would be no possibility of it happening.

“The Great North Run is about bringing people together and the pandemic was keeping people apart.

“The first glimmer of hope was back in January with the vaccine and we could see what a difference it could make.”

Sir Brendan said changing the route to start and finish in Newcastle was a difficult decision as the race ‘has always been about the city and the sea’ but organisers did so on the safety recommendation of experts.

“It’s the biggest change for many, many years but people have a positive attitude.

“Newcastle is the capital of the North East and the Great North Run will be the biggest show in town for the whole region this weekend.”

A much easier decision however was asking NHS staff start the race, and dedicating each mile of the route to a key worker.

Sir Brendan said:  “In the past we’ve had celebrities and people from the world of sport but this year the decision was obvious for us to thank the NHS staff. Without them and the vaccine rollout this wouldn’t be happening. They’ve made it so the Great North Run, and everything else, can happen.”

There has not been a televised mass participation sporting event held since October 2019, and Sir Brendan is hopeful that the return of the Great North Run will be a morale boost for people across the country.

He said: “Now we’re coming out the other side of it, we’ll be the first mass event on TV. When people see the runners, and see it happening on their TV, it’ll be a boost for people.

“We think it’ll be a big boost of morale for people taking part and people watching. It has certainly been a huge boost of morale for our staff.”

With thousands of runners pounding the pavement together and raising money for good causes, often in memory of loved ones, the Great North Run is always quite an emotional event, but this year emotions will be more heightened than ever.

Sir Brendan said: “The emotion of the Great North Run is decided by the people taking part and I am sensing there’s going to be a lot of emotions and it’ll be a wonderful event.

“For a lot of people this time has helped them realise the real pleasure in running, running in groups and running with people and the positive effect that has for people.

“It’s the people who take part who make the Great North Run what it is, we do the organising, the participants are the ones who make it what it is.”