The BOND Continues for Portsmouth and the Great South Run
Iconic movie actress Britt Ekland led the team for the Alzheimer’s Society at the launch of the 21st Bupa Great South Run yesterday, alongside former football manager, Lawrie McMenemy. With a stunning cake in tow of fun runners in front of the iconic HMS Victory, the organisers promised to make the event a celebration to remember when they took to the stage in Action Stations at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.
The Bupa Great South Run will take place on Sunday October 24 and there was great pride when compilation footage of the past 21 years showed how what had started as a fledgling event had now grown into becoming the world's most prestigious 10 mile race and now an International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Gold Label event.
That is the highest accolade any road running meeting can be awarded and the IAAF - the world governing body of athletics – has for 2010 issued only 23 certificates, with the Bupa Great South Run being the only 10 mile event on the list.
Hollywood actress, Britt Ekland, a 1974 Bond girl in The Man With The Golden Gun and cult classics such as Get Carter and The Wicker Man, has thrown her weight behind this year's Bupa Great South Run, which passes close to the birthplace of her one-time husband Peter Sellers.
She is encouraging runners to pledge to help raise £1m for the Alzheimer's Society of which she is a patron. Speaking at the race's launch she said: “Dementia is heartbreaking. My mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in Sweden in 1984, but she had had it for many years before that.”
Now a record entry of 23,000 runners including elite athletes, club runners, celebrities and the vital ingredient of leisure runners who make it such a fun occasion, will descend into Portsmouth for the first Bupa Great South Run of the new decade.
"Teamwork with Portsmouth City Council and other local agencies over such a long period has seen the race weekend grow in size and stature year-on-year," said David Hart the Communications Director of organisers, Nova International.
"The flat, fast course lending itself to fast times has also been a major factor in attracting Olympic, World, European and other champions and of course the hundreds of thousands of runners who have competed for their favourite charities."
The event has been staged in Portsmouth since 1991. Cllr Lee Hunt, Member for Leisure and Culture commented: “The Great South Run is a hugely successful and popular event that attracts runners from all over the UK. It is a fantastic boost for the city and the local economy.”
Other guests of honour at the launch were Portsmouth University student James Willis, who will celebrate his 21st birthday on the day of this year’s Bupa Great South Run by taking part and the Historic Dockyard’s very own Simon Ware who works for the Mary Rose Trust and has taken part in every single race since 1990.
Race organisers believe Mr Ware is the only person who has taken part in every single race – but are keen to hear from anybody who can prove them wrong.
Simon ran his first race back in 1987 in Surrey where he completed 10k, he then went on to run in the Windsor Great Park Half Marathon on October 4th of the same year.
Since then, his enjoyment of running has grown and he runs two to three times a week, clocking up 5-12 miles each time. Simon has also taken part in three of the London Marathons and has raised money for various charities throughout the years.
The race is televised live on Channel 5, with iconic images of the city and in particular Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, beamed around the globe.
Entries are open at www.greatrun.org for both the Senior event and the Bupa Junior and Mini Great South Runs, which take place on the preceding day.
Photos courtesy of Peter Langdown
