THE details for the 10th community legacy fun run, Run For The 97, have been released.
Organisers are inviting supporters to make a note in their diary for next year’s event on Saturday, May 18, as entries are now open.
Run For The 97 takes place in Stanley Park – located between the home football stadiums of the city’s two Premier League clubs, Liverpool Football Club at Anfield Stadium and Everton Football Club at Goodison Park.
The event features a 5K fun run starting at 9.30am, followed by a one-mile fun run from 10.30am once all the 5K participants have cleared the course.
Run For The 97 was first staged in 2015 as a positive inclusive event to celebrate and honour the lives of the 97 Liverpool Football Club fans who lost their lives at Hillsborough on April 15 1989.
The event also remembers the families of The 97 and the survivors, who have since tirelessly fought for justice with the utmost dignity. They continue to campaign for a Hillsborough Law.
Run For The 97 has involved the wider community, while fundraising for local charities.
The entry fee pays to stage and deliver all aspects of the event including run numbers, T-shirts and medals, virtual entries, as well as event day staging, safety, and facilities.
Participants are invited to fundraise for the three beneficiary charities.
Run For The 97 provides a platform to fundraise or make a one-off charity donation. Since it was first staged in 2015, the event has helped to raise almost £45,000 for good causes in the city.
Run For The 97 2024 official charity partners are Jamie Carragher’s 23 Foundation, Liverpool Football Club’s official club charity LFC Foundation, and Stanley Park junior parkrun.
The charities support the vision of creating a legacy to honour The 97 while ensuring local communities benefit through their work.
Monies raised will be split equally between the three charities to fund vital community outreach programmes.
The official Just Giving online donation page can be found at https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/runforthe972024.
Next year’s Run For The 97 also forms part of the 23 Foundation’s celebrations for its 15th anniversary in 2024.
The original idea for Run For The 97 came from Liverpool FC fan Dom Williams, who had organised a number of team charity walks between Liverpool and Sheffield.
Dom was approached by people who wanted to support the team’s efforts but were unable to commit the time to the challenge – which prompted his idea to create an inclusive event. He approached independent run event organisers BTR Liverpool in 2014 and within 12 months the first event took place.
Run For The 97 was staged as a virtual run in 2020 and 2021 due to the global pandemic.
Virtual registration has continued and enables national and overseas football fans to support the event. Virtual runners are sent their run number, T-shirt, and medal prior to the event so they can take part on the same day wherever they are in the world.
International participants have included virtual runners in America, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Jersey, Netherland, Norway, Singapore, South Africa, and Switzerland.
The route is accessible and the event is open to everyone – walk, jog or run to remember The 97.
BTR Liverpool organise and deliver Run For The 97. BTR Liverpool is the leading independent organisation for creating, managing, and delivering headline running events across Liverpool City Region.
'It’s a very special, poignant, and uplifting event'
BTR Liverpool Race Director Alan Rothwell said: "Plans are well underway for the milestone 10th staging of Run For The 97.
"It’s a very special, poignant, and uplifting event to celebrate the lives of The 97 in a respectful and fitting way while we also remember their families and the survivors.
"We must always remember and Run For The 97 has created a positive community legacy to help keep that message in people’s minds whatever their age, while at the same time providing a platform for participants to fundraise for vital outreach programmes in the local communities.
"Join us on event day in Stanley Park on Saturday, May 18 2024 or support virtually wherever you are in the world, as we run to remember The 97 at the 10th Run For The 97."
To find out more about Run For The 97 or register visit https://www.btrliverpool.com/97-5k-event.
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