London played host to the 11th annual Royal Parks Half Marathon, presented by Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) last month. Over 16,000 runners from 39 countries completed the scenic 13.1-mile race in sometimes challenging Autumn conditions.
Key Facts of the Royal Parks Half
Named the World’s Most Stunning Half Marathon by Red Bull
The route passes 11 iconic landmarks including Buckingham Palace and Big Ben
Second largest mass participation fundraising event in the UK
556 charities participated in 2018 – a new record
16,000+ participants, 56% women
International runners from 39 countries
RBC winner of the 2018 UK Sponsorship Awards for ‘Most Effective Use of Mass Participations Sponsorship’
The award-winning Royal Parks Half – named the World’s Most Stunning Half by Red Bull - is still the only race of its kind, taking runners through four of London’s eight Royal Parks: Hyde Park, The Green Park, St James’s Park and Kensington Gardens. Competitors also took in iconic landmarks including Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square and the Houses of Parliament.
RBC became Presenting Partner of the Half and the RBC Corporate 13.1 team race in 2017 and this year a record-breaking 300 Team RBC runners took part contributing to over £5 million raised for 556 charities. Earlier this year RBC extended the partnership through to 2020.
Dave Thomas, CEO, Europe, RBC Capital Markets said ‘RBC is committed to helping our communities prosper and we also understand the importance of keeping active to help with mental and physical well-being. The Royal Parks Half is a tremendous event, raising funds for truly worthwhile causes and increasing awareness of environmental issues. The Royal Parks Half has become a hugely popular race and we are delighted to be part of it once again.’
The event continues to promote its green credentials and sustainable ethos and this year, the Royal Parks Half removed 100,000 plastic bottles from the course and festival area, with runners receiving a carton of water at the end of the race, rather than a single use plastic bottle. By 2020 the Royal Parks Half has committed to going entirely plastic free, both on the course and in the festival area. In addition, race shirts are made from sustainable bamboo and up-cycled plastic bottles and all discarded clothing is collected and donated to Traid, since 2008 nearly 1,000kgs of clothing has been saved from landfill sites.
Since the inaugural event in 2008, the Royal Parks Half has remained focused on its charitable aims and credits much of its success to its many philanthropic partnerships. The race has now raised in excess of £40 million for participating charities over that time.
