Parkrun

Who we are

Parkrun was founded by Paul Sinton-Hewitt on 2 October 2004 at Bushy Park in London, England. The event was originally called the Bushy Park Time Trial. It grew into a network of similar events called the UK Time Trials, before adopting the name Parkrun in 2008 and expanding into other countries. The first event outside of the United Kingdom was launched in Zimbabwe in 2007, followed by Denmark in 2009, South Africa and Australia in 2011 and the United States in 2012. Sinton-Hewitt received a CBE for his services to grassroots sport in 2014. By October 2018 over 5 million runners were registered worldwide.

Events take place at a range of general locations including parks, stately homes, forests, rivers, lakes, reservoirs, beaches, promenades, custodial sites and nature reserves.

Our culture and values

Parkrun is a health and wellbeing charity and our vision is to create a healthier and happier planet.

Since our conception in 2004, parkrun has evolved into a global social movement with a vibrant and inclusive community at its core. As of 2024, we have recorded over 100-million instances of walking, jogging, running, and volunteering.

Our mission is to transform lives by empowering people to be active, together, outdoors in their local community; and to protect parkrun for the generations to come. Each and every weekend, we deliver free, weekly timed events that people of all ages and backgrounds can join in. By tackling barriers to participation, we encourage communities to come together and embrace regular physical activity.

Now in its 20th year, parkrun spans over 2,500 locations in 22 countries with more than 9.5 million people registered, and counting.

And we have really only just begun.