21st January 2025

• With around 9% of the population registered for parkrun, Ireland has the greatest penetration of parkrunners in the world
• parkrunners will have the chance to meet parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt and Olympian and Vhi ambassador David Gillick at Marlay parkrun on the 1st February at 9:30 a.m.
• Vhi has been presenting partner of parkrun in Ireland since 2016
• The number of parkruns in Ireland has grown from 46 in 2016 to over 150 currently

21st January 2025: The parkrun community will have the opportunity to meet parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt, along with Olympian and Vhi ambassador David Gillick on Saturday 1st February at 9:30 a.m. at Marlay parkrun. This event celebrates parkrun’s long-standing partnership with Vhi in Ireland.

Sinton-Hewitt began parkrun in 2004 as a time trial between a small group of friends in Bushy park London. It has since grown into a global phenomenon, with more than ten million registered parkrunners and events taking place in over 2,600 communities worldwide every weekend. parkrun has been in Ireland since 2012, and having begun with one event in Malahide, 9% of the Irish population are now registered for parkrun, the highest percentage of parkrunners in any country in the world.

Vhi became the presenting partner of parkrun Ireland in 2016 and since then the number of events has grown substantially, from 46 locations to over 150 nationwide. The popularity of parkrun continues to grow in Ireland with more people attending events than ever before in 2024:

• The number of finishes at 5km parkruns exceeded 500,000 for the first time
• There were almost 100,000 finishes at 2km junior parkruns
• There were over 100,000 instances of volunteering

Brighid Smyth, Head of Corporate Communications, Vhi said: “We are very proud of our long-running partnership with parkrun in Ireland and it’s very exciting to be able to mark the partnership by bringing parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt to Marlay parkrun on Saturday 1st February.

“Our purpose at Vhi is to help our members live longer, stronger, healthier lives. We don’t only support our members during illness, we also proactively encourage them to look after their health and wellbeing, and our partnership with parkrun is a brilliant way to do this.

“We work closely with parkrun on ways to support and grow the parkrun community, including through campaigns that promote the positive impact of parkrun on participants and raise awareness of important issues such as mental health and sun safety”.

Paul Sinton-Hewitt, parkrun founder said: “It’s a pleasure to be back in Ireland visiting Marlay parkrun on the 1st of February to celebrate Vhi’s partnership with parkrun. I was at the very first parkrun event in Ireland in Malahide in 2012 and it’s been wonderful to see the growth of parkrun in Ireland in the years since.

“Our mission at parkrun is ‘to transform health and happiness by empowering people to come together, to be active, social and outdoors’. Our partnership with Vhi has allowed us to do just that in Ireland and has been a major factor in the continued growth of parkrun here.”

Vhi ambassador David Gillick said “I’m a huge advocate of parkrun and the mental and physical health benefits it can offer. I’m really looking forward to joining founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt at Marlay parkrun on Saturday February 1st. I’m sure there will be a huge turnout from the parkrun community on the day to give Paul a big Irish welcome! If you can’t make it to Marlay, then why not head along to your local event?”

For more information about parkrun, and to register for a parkrun near you visit www.parkrun.ie. New registrants should select their chosen event as their home location. You will then receive a personal barcode which acts as your free entry to any parkrun event worldwide.

ENDS

Notes to the editor:

About Vhi

• Vhi is Ireland’s leading health insurer and have been presenting partners with parkrun since 2016
• Vhi has a long history of supporting activities that promote healthy lifestyles, particularly in the area of participative running
• Vhi also sponsors the Vhi Women’s Mini Marathon
• Vhi purpose is to help people live longer, stronger, healthier lives and they want to support people nationwide to lace up their runners and get active.
• www.Vhi.ie / www.facebook.com/vhihealthcare / @Vhi_ie