BUPA Great South Run 2006
THE BUPA Great South Run will increase its entry to 18,000 runners this autumn. Organisers have pledged to build further on the reputation of what is now regarded as Europe's Premier 10 mile running event when it returns to the Naval City of Portsmouth on October 22nd.
The event has gained a name for itself amongst some of the world's finest runners as well as the thousands of fun and club runners who take part in the annual running classic on the South coast.
Perhaps best known for Sonia O'Sullivan's world best performance in 2002, the BUPA Great South Run has also provided a springboard for New York Marathon success for South African, Hendrick Ramaala in 2004.
Ethiopia's Derartu Tulu, a past Olympic and World 10000m gold medallist and the world's greatest ever distance runner, won a second title last year with another formidable performance.
This year's event has a provisional entry limit of 18,000 but, following exceptional demand in recent years, is again expected to have reached its limit well before the published closing date of July 26th.
David Hart, Communications Director of race organisers Nova International, said: "The demand for the BUPA Great South Run has increased phenomenally in recent years and with it just being voted, by readers of Runner's World Magazine, as the second most popular event in the UK, we expect the entry limit to be reached in weeks, rather than months. Last year we turned away over 10,000 applications."
The weekend of activity kicks off with the Tesco Junior and Mini Great South Runs on Saturday October 21st; two more events that have surged in popularity in the last two years. The main event, the BUPA Great South Run, will see a morning start on Sunday October 22nd.
Actor Joe McGann, who has featured in The Upper Hand and The Hanging Gale, has already signed up to take part and is to run for BUPA's nominated charity, Marie Curie Cancer Care and is expected to be joined by a number of other personalities from stage and screen.
Prospective participants can enter the BUPA Great South Run or Tesco Junior & Mini Great South Runs at www.greatrun.org or they can ring the hotline on 023 9283 4728 for an entry form. The cost of entry is £28.