It was blue skies and beautiful sunshine for this year’s RBC Running Weekend, which took place in Hyde Park the weekend of 7-8 October and welcomed over 23,000 participants.
On the Saturday, 7,000 people took part in the fourteenth annual RBC Race for the Kids in London, raising money for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity (GOSH Charity). Children who had been treated at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) and their families, the public and over 2,300 RBC employees and their friends and families tackled the beautiful 5km route. All ages and abilities took part in this fully inclusive family event, with dogs, pushchairs, wheelchairs and scooters all welcome.
The London Race has raised an incredible £9.5 million for GOSH Charity since it began in 2010, including over £900,000 this year, which will go towards GOSH Charity’s most ambitious fundraising appeal to date – building a new Children’s Cancer Centre at GOSH – which will help transform children’s cancer care and save more children’s lives.
The London Race is part of a series of 24 RBC Race for the Kids events around the world, all in support of children and youth charities globally. To date, the series has attracted more than 360,000 participants worldwide and collectively raised more than CAD$82 million.
On the Sunday, RBC returned as Presenting Partner of the Royal Parks Half Marathon for a seventh year, where 16,000 runners completed the iconic 13.1 mile route amongst a terrific atmosphere of supporters. RBC fielded a team of over 280 runners, including 150+ clients, with runners joining from around the world, including the U.S. and Canada, for this very special event.
The route took runners through four of London’s eight Royal Parks, including Hyde Park, Green Park, St James’s Park, and Kensington Gardens, and past some of London’s most iconic landmarks such as Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, and the Houses of Parliament. On-course entertainment helped runners to the finish line, including four RBC cheer stations consisting of two DJ trucks, bunting tunnel, Batala drummers and a 20+ cheerleading squad. There was also an RBC photo wall, featuring this year’s route map, for the all-important medal selfie.
The Half has an incredible impact on the community, having raised nearly £65 million for 1,200 charities since it began in 2008, including more than £5.4 million for 567 charities this year alone. To further support the community, RBC sponsored the Inspire series, shining a spotlight on five inspirational charity runners and their stories, and well as the RBC Champion Award, recognising the highest individual fundraiser with an additional £5,000 to their chosen charity. This year’s RBC Champion Award winner, Jasmin Owens, was also an RBC Inspire winner, and has raised an astounding £28,000+ for The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.
Widely regarded as one of the UK’s most eco-friendly major running events, the Royal Parks Half once again gave runners the opportunity to plant a tree instead of collecting finisher’s t-shirts made from recycled materials, whilst encouraging runners to avoid using single-use plastic bottles during the race. In line with this, the race provided runners with fill-up stations along the route equipped with compostable cups to ensure all runners had access to water during the race.
“The RBC Running Weekend is a highlight of the RBC calendar and we’re proud to sponsor RBC Race for the Kids and The Royal Parks Half Marathon. It was wonderful to see so many colleagues, friends, families and clients, as well as GOSH patients, supporters, and the public, coming together to fundraise for hundreds of fantastic causes, including our long-standing partner GOSH Charity and The Royal Parks.
Thank you and congratulations to everyone who took part, and a special thank you to GOSH Charity, The Royal Parks Charity, and London Marathon Events for the brilliant collaboration involved behind the scenes to make the weekend so special for everyone.”- Dave Thomas, CEO RBC Europe
RBC Race for the Kids and Royal Parks Half partnerships support RBC’s commitment to helping clients thrive and communities prosper. In addition, RBC Europe partner with a number of community projects, charity partners and responsible organisations to raise money for worthwhile causes, protect the environment and support local communities. Find out more at www.rbccm.com/europe.
Please click through to view photos from the event day.