Run to the Beat, first held in 2008, was the first

half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcut ...

event in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

,London's First Official Half Marathon, Tri247, 23 January 2008
/ref> taking its name from the use of music along the route. It was initially organised by

IMG img or IMG is an abbreviation for image. img or IMG may also refer to: * IMG (company), global sports and media business headquartered in New York City but with its main offices in Cleveland, originally known as the "International Management Group ...

, and held each autumn in south-east London until 2013, attracting, at its peak, some 19,000 runners. From 2014, it became a 10 km event elsewhere in London.

History

Organisers expected more than 12,000 runners to take part in the inaugural race in

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

on 5 October 2008. But bad weather on the day and tube delays saw just 7252 runners cross the startline. Of those 55% were female and 45% were male. The first event was sponsored by

Sony Ericsson Sony Mobile Communications Inc. ( ja, ソニーモバイルコミュニケーションズ株式会社) was a multinational telecommunications company founded on October 1, 2001, as a joint venture between Sony Group Corporation and Ericsson. ...

, who returned as sponsor in 2009;

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

was official sponsor from 2011 to 2013. The event raised money for its official charity, Leukaemia Research, raising over £400,000 in 2008. The 2009 race was held on 27 September 2009. The route started and finished at

The O2 The O2 is a large entertainment district on the Greenwich peninsula in South East London, England, including an indoor arena, a music club, a Cineworld cinema, an exhibition space, piazzas, bars, and restaurants. It was built largely withi ...

. Runners initially headed along the river towards the Thames Barrier, past The Royal Artillery Museum and the

Royal Artillery Barracks Royal Artillery Barracks, Woolwich, is a barracks of the British Army which forms part of Woolwich Garrison. The Royal Regiment of Artillery had its headquarters here from 1776 until 2007, when it was moved to Larkhill Garrison. History In 17 ...

, and through

Greenwich Park Greenwich Park is a former hunting park in Greenwich and one of the largest single green spaces in south-east London. One of the Royal Parks of London, and the first to be enclosed (in 1433), it covers , and is part of the Greenwich World Heritag ...

. A main stage was located next to the start/finish line and music was played at 16 stages along the route. After criticisms of the route and organisation in 2012, the route changed for the 2013 event, starting and finishing in Greenwich Park, and many runners among the 19,000 participants experienced even worse problems in this edition, described as 'shambolic'. As a result, this was the final year it was run as a half marathon; it became a 10 km event in

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...

. The theory behind the event came from Dr Costas Karageorghis,Dr Costas Karageorghis Biography – Brunel University
/ref> associate professor of sport psychology at

Brunel University Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In Jun ...

. He said: :"When carefully selected, our research shows that music can help increase performance levels quite profoundly. ... I will ensure that the tempo and rhythm of the music contour the physiological demands of the event – to provide athletes with the additional motivation needed to pull a great performance out of the bag or even just to help them enjoy the experience a little more."

Winners

Men

* 2008 John McFarlane, 1:10:12Run to the Beat results, 2009-2014
Accessed: 21 July 2015. * 2009 Ezekiel Cherop, 1:03:00 * 2010 Tewodros Shiferaw Asfaw, 1:04:57
Run247. Accessed: 22 July 2015. * 2011 Milton Kiplagat Rotich, 1:01:20 * 2012 Ryan McKinlay, 1:10:07 * 2013 Ryan McKinlay, 1:12:12 * 2014 Michele Bucci 34:02

Women

* 2008 Birhan Dagne, 1:18:22 * 2009 Genet Measso, 1:16:15 * 2010 Hellen Jemutai, 1:14:09 * 2011 Alice Mogire, 1:09:52 * 2012 Amy Akhaveissy, 1:22:21 * 2013 Anjli Mapara, 1:26:07 * 2014 Sarah Fowkes 40:02

References

External links

Official Run to the Beat website
{{coord missing, London Annual events in London Athletics competitions in England Half marathons in the United Kingdom Athletics in London