Geordies are clearly stepping up to the mark when it comes to exercise as a new report reveals that that one in 40 people across the city now run.
Research by The Great Run Company shows that those in the North East are no slackers when it comes to pounding the pavement as Newcastle emerges at the top of its list for numbers of people taking part in its annual events. The company – which organises mass participation runs around the country, with our annual Great North Run being the flagship event – is delighted to find that almost 21,000 Geordies took part in one of their runs last year.
And not all strictly Geordies but proud North Easterners nevertheless as the areas boasting the most runners, according to its report, come from South Shields as well as Gosforth, perhaps not surprising being the finish and near start point for the world-famous half-marathon, which as previously reported has an entry ballot currently under way – just until January 15 – for this September’s return.
In drawing up its report, the company used postcode data from the more than 180,000 participants who took part in one of its annual runs during 2024 and it reveals that “nearly 21,000 Geordies took part in one of the mass events this year, equating to one in 40 Newcastle residents”.
Sir Brendan Foster, Great North Run founder and president, said Newcastle is now “a city of seasoned runners”. A ‘heatmap’ produced of runners across the UK highlighted it as the running hotspot, leading a top 10 locations which also included Durham in eighth place.
Runners passing the South Shields finish line of last year’s Great North Run
(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)
Newcastle in first place ranked above Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Stockport then, after Durham, came Edinburgh and Cleveland. The runners were most likely to live at one of five top postcodes which included NE1 – Gosforth – in top place followed by NE34 (South Shields) in second then Southsea, Didsworth (Manchester) and Bedminster (Bristol).
The wider North East region accounted for one in five ‘great’ runners this year, added the report. Next running hubs following ours were the north west and Scotland, while one in 10 runners came from either the south west and south central regions.
Sir Brendan said: “It’s no surprise that the home of the world’s greatest half marathon, the Great North Run, is now a city of seasoned runners. The event is ingrained in the history of the city and has no doubt influenced many Geordies to lace up and get running.
“However, more importantly our report shows that more and more people are finding a love of running and reaping the many benefits that come from participating. People of all ages, all postcodes across the UK and even overseas, are running our events.”
In addition, trends reveal a ‘significant’ growth in new runners, showing a year on year increase with 53% being first timers last year, and there is a boom in younger age groups. Of 2024’s entrants, 47% was aged 35 or under. The gender gap is shrinking too – with 46% of its runners last year being female; a 2% year on year increase – while it seems that women were opting more for 5K and 10K distances with 25% more men taking on a half-marathon distance.
But 23-year-old Becky Dodds from Cramlington in Northumberland took part in the Great North Run last year, despite never having run before, and is one of those who has found a new love for running. She ran her first half-marathon in memory of her grandma and even set up her own run club, called The Coffee Run, to create group support and it has grown hugely.
“Running in a group makes it so much easier,” she says. “They push me every week; it inspires me every single day!”
Sir Brendan, like tens of thousands of others, is now looking forward to the return of the main event in September, saying: “We can’t wait to welcome even more ‘great’ runners in 2025!” The 2025 AJ Bell Great North Run will take place on Sunday, September 7.
For more about the entry ballot, which closes on January 15, see here. Find the Great Run Company’s full range of nationwide events here.