Celebrating 500 Cootehill parkruns

Cootehill parkrun will celebrate its 500th running event with a special event tomorrow, which just happens to be Valentines day!

"Come show your love of our fantastic event," the organisers encourage.

To mark this milestone cake and refreshments will be available and organisers would love to welcome returning park runners, new faces, regular participants, and volunteers to join in the celebrations.

Officially launched on November 1, 2014, the free, timed 5km parkrun takes place every Saturday morning at 9.30am in Halton’s Amenity Park in Cootehill.

Cootehill parkrun was the first parkrun in County Cavan and remains the only parkrun in Ireland where participants cross two counties during the run, moving from county Cavan into county Monaghan via a footbridge along the course.

Cootehill parkrun prides itself on being inclusive and welcoming to all. It is not a race, the timing system is there to help participants track their own progress if they wish.

The emphasis is on being active, enjoying the outdoors, and taking part in a supportive community event. Even after 500 events new participants continue to join every week.

Since its launch, a total of 26,901 people have finished the event, with 3,698 personal bests recorded. Participants have ranged in age from 5 to 70 years, highlighting the wide appeal of the event. Weekly attendance averages around 50 participants.

A standout moment in the event’s history came in February 2018, when a record 216 parkrunners took part in support of Sarah O’Callaghan (RIP), a much-loved leader on RTÉ’s Operation Transformation.

"Cootehill parkrun is entirely volunteer-run, and its continued success depends on the dedication of local volunteers who organise the event each week," the organisers praised.

"We have stellar support from our participants who do side line help by clearing paths of leaves, helping to grit the path during icy periods and assisting with simple tasks like collecting our signage each week. These small jobs support the core run director team and the sustainability of the event in no small way."

Meanwhile, the event is managed by a dedicated team of run directors whose commitment over the 500 events has ensured Cootehill parkrun’s success.

Thanks are also extended to Cootehill Area Development, Cavan Sports Partnership, Coillte, Erica’s Fairy Forest, local businesses and Cootehill Chamber of Commerce for their continued support.

For more information, visit www.parkrun.ie/cootehill, find Cootehill parkrun on Facebook, or email cootehilloffice@parkrun.com.