Added to your bag
Added to my wishlist

Sign in or create your account

to benefit from exclusive offers and privileges
and take advantage of your loyalty program

0

Your wishlist is empty

Added to my wishlist

Running 3.0: Racing Solo

NEWS | August 13, 2020
With marathons and other sports events on the back burner for the time being, competitive runners are keeping the pace and doing timed races on their own. All they need: a timer or smartphone and an internet connection. Say hello to the digital race.

This November, we won't be seeing the usual crowds of athletes running across the Queensboro bridge for the New York marathon. Like many of the world's great races this year, it's been cancelled due to the pandemic. Not to be discouraged, the runners are more motivated than ever to find an alternative. Enter virtual races, à la carte.

Running solo all while competing with other participants is nothing new. Strava, for example, is a platform accessible via GPS and smartphone, founded in 2009, a precursor of the coming movement. What differentiates these new-age races is that they also rank each competitor. The day of the event, the app determines the runner's path based on the race's distance. With a clock ticking on their wrist or in their cell phone, the participant is quite literally off to the races, with the app registering their movements. Plus, there's no pressure to be at the starting line on time. Runners can set off when they wish and see how they're placing as they go. Oh, and the number of athletes? Unlimited.

It's a great opportunity for certain platforms and organizers to get involved — let's not forget that the Paris Marathon, for example, assembles over 49,000 runners each year. For the time being, Sport Heroes is in the lead. The platform, which collects contestant's data, has established algorithms that ensure the reliable recording of solo runner's finish times. They're already planning a marathon, and perhaps even a triathlon.

Plenty of other sports companies have taken the hint: in June, Puma sponsored a virtual 10K, while Brooks rang in World Running Day with a celebratory 5K. 

Have we reached the height of individualism? Not necessarily. During lockdown, many of these competitions also allowed athletes to collect donations for worthy causes, including healthcare workers. As cancellations abound, organizers have been uniting to plan smaller, more local events for passionate runners. The initiatives have allowed running communities to band together. Plus, we can also applaud the absence of plastic cups on the side of the road and all the extra transport emissions. In light of all this, these eco-friendly races may be the perfect response to the times.

Welcome to printemps.com, you are connecting from: UK and your language is set to english.