Dame Kelly Holmes, the Olympic champion, joined runners at Bushy Park in West London on Saturday to celebrate the one millionth parkrun. The milestone 5km event took place at the same location where the very first parkrun was held over 20 years ago.
A historic milestone for parkrun
The landmark run occurred on a sunny morning, with a large turnout of participants queuing in finish funnels to record their times. Runners held cards forming a “thanks a million” sign, and Dame Kelly wore a “Celebrating 1m” t-shirt. The event marked a significant achievement for the free, weekly community runs.
Paul Sinton-Hewitt, who organised the first event – then called Bushy Park Time Trial – in October 2004 with just 13 runners and five volunteers, joined Dame Kelly and parkrun Global chief executive Elizabeth Duggan at the celebration. Since then, parkrun has grown into a global phenomenon with more than 2,800 locations in 23 countries, including weekly 5km runs on Saturdays and 2km junior runs on Sundays.
Founder reflects on unexpected success
Mr Sinton-Hewitt, 65, said a million events was “never in the plan”. He added: “Nobody ever thought we would get to a million. But of course now the next million’s going to come so much quicker.” He described the numbers as “extraordinary” and noted that many people born since parkrun began “just don’t understand a world where parkrun doesn’t exist”.
Although he no longer handles day-to-day operations, Mr Sinton-Hewitt hopes to retire from the organisation in about a year. He also commented on the King’s visit to Sandringham parkrun in January, expressing pride and a desire for more royal involvement.
Inclusivity and future growth
Mr Sinton-Hewitt attributed parkrun’s success to its simplicity, inclusivity, and free nature. Elizabeth Duggan, CEO of parkrun Global, called hitting one million events “just phenomenal”. She revealed ambitions to expand from 23 to 30 countries by 2030 and increase weekly participation from half a million to three-quarters of a million.
Darren Wood, the first runner to complete 1,000 parkruns, reached that milestone last month. He now focuses on walking and volunteering due to knee issues.
