Olympic gold medallist Sir Mo Farah will finish his last London race in Greenwich when he joins thousands of runners for The Big Half community race next week.
The four-time gold medallist announced in April that 2023 would be his final year before retirement.
He said: “I’m excited to run my last ever London race at The Big Half. It will be bittersweet, knowing it will be the last time I race competitively in my hometown but it’s always such a great day and I know the London crowds will be cheering me on, as they always do. I look forward to being back in London and hope to bring home the win one final time.”
Spencer Barden, the head of elite athletes at London Marathon Events, added: “It’s fantastic to have Sir Mo leading the field at this year’s The Big Half. Mo has had a phenomenal career and everyone at London Marathon Events wishes him all the best in his retirement. Before that though, we hope he signs off his racing career in London with another record-breaking win at The Big Half.”
What is The Big Half?
The event is a community race to honour the London Marathon, and is organised by the same people who organise the London Marathon. This year, The Big Half takes place on Sunday, September 3.
The race is set to have 15,000 runners taking part this year and will also have an elite field joining as it will be a UK-qualifying event for the 2023 World Athletics Road Running Championships Half Marathon in Latvia later this October.
The Big Half is easier to enter and grab a spot to run, and as the website states aims to “celebrate the diversity of the boroughs which the race passes through – Tower Hamlets, Southwark, Lewisham and Greenwich”.
The event also includes the Big Relay, in which teams of four complete 5k of the route each, and the family-oriented Big Mile, which is free for anyone and sees people run a mile through Greenwich.
What is the route?
The Big Half enjoys many of the beautiful scenes of the capital that the London Marathon does, but as the name suggests - is only half the distance.
Runners will line up at the start line in Wapping before running through Canary Wharf, Tower Bridge, Rotherhithe and Deptford before finally making their way to the finish line at the Cutty Sark.
The Big Mile starts and finishes in Greenwich and the Big Relay is the same as the Big Half.
How to enter
The Big Mile will start at 2.30 pm. It is free to run and entries are still open now. Those wanting to join in can do so by registering for free on the event’s website here.
Sadly, the entries for both general runners in the bigger event and charity spaces closed last week on Thursday, August 24.
