Parkrun often a 'starting point' for people's exercise journey, says event director of Worcester one
It's as Worcester parkrun says it's seen its usual surge in attendees over Christmas and New Year, setting a new record for the number of finishers for the second year running
Organisers of Worcester parkrun have said it continues to act as place for people to start in their aim to get fitter and more active as part of their New Year resolutions.
The event had previously seen 1,000 people run the 5k course on Christmas Day in 2024 to set a new attendance record, but a year later nearly 200 more runners showed up to beat that total, 1,178 finishing.
Their achievement was mirrored by the city's Pitchcroft parkrun on New Year's Day which also smashed its previous best with 815 completing it, 189 higher than six years earlier.
Worcester parkrun's event director Richard Ralphs said they are used to the surge in numbers over Christmas by now and how that gives people the chance to go on to achieve other running aspirations they might have.
"We see a lot of people starting running or walking over the festive period with a lot of us doing resolutions regarding sports and exercise," he said.
"In fact, we're a starting point for a lot of people's exercise and people go on to do a lot more extensive events like 10Ks, marathons.
"So we're just a stepping stone really and a lot of people use it as a regular event to come along to and a lot of people continue to run after starting."
For Hereford parkrun it was also a landmark moment for them over the festive season as they held their 500th event on New Year's Day.