Thousands of runners broke attendance records at Christmas Day parkruns across Ireland, with Stormont in east Belfast exceeding 1,000 participants for the first time. Festive-costumed crowds turned the free, timed 5k runs into a celebrated seasonal tradition marked by cheering, selfies and Santa hats.
Stormont parkrun drew 1,152 participants on Christmas morning, smashing last year's 790 runners and setting a record for the third consecutive year. Wallace Park in Lisburn saw 713 runners – nearly 100 more than its previous Christmas Day record and up from 624 last year.
Race director Marianne Hood described how Stormont has become a Christmas destination. «I think it's now becoming a tradition,» she said. «So many people, I think that they're hearing about it, and then they're wanting to come this year to see what it was like because they've heard of people from last year. And this is the third year in a row that we're going to have set records. And I think the atmosphere is so brilliant. Everybody dresses up and it's so much craic. So I think just people are hearing more about Stormont Parkrun as the destination to go for Christmas Day.»
Community spirit
The atmosphere sets Christmas parkruns apart from regular Saturday events. «The atmosphere is brilliant. It's so fun. Nobody cares about their time,» Hood explained. «Nobody cares that they're backed up the avenue waiting to get their token. It's just really, really good for families. Really good for friends and friend groups. There's everybody taking selfies, everybody's taking photographs of each other. It's brilliant. The atmosphere is class.»
Irish former Olympic rower Eugene Coakley joined the Stormont run after opening presents. «Christmas morning and 1,000 people, I believe, are here – there's nowhere better you'd want to be than in Stormont park having a parkrun, it's brilliant,» he said after crossing the finish line. «We've been up all morning opening presents, but to get out and get a bit of fresh air and run around the park is brilliant.»
At Wallace Park, runners queued to finish for the first time in the event's history since 2013. «We had 624 runners here last year. They were queuing to finish this year, which has never happened before, so we are well above that today,» said run director Jonathan Davis. «This is such a massive community event. People wouldn't turn up here if they didn't want to, particularly on Christmas morning. It brings people together in a way that very few other things can do and I think it is something we should cherish.»
Davis credited dedicated volunteers who organize the weekly events. «We have been going here in Wallace Park since 2013. We are doing something right, we are very lucky to have an incredible team of volunteers that turns up here every single week,» he said.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
