Record attendance for 200th Bryanston parkrun

More than 1 300 runners were up bright and early in celebration of the 200th Bryanston parkrun event at Riverside Park.

Other than attracting a record crowd, the event on 18 November unveiled the Bryanston parkrun’s official mascot, a lion, handcrafted by local artist Winterton James. The lion, which was stationed at the finish of the run, was donated by the Bryanston East Community Forum, who takes care of the Riverside Park, where the run is held each Saturday.

Bryanston parkrun organiser and chairperson of the forum Ian Tumiel said he hoped to station all five of the big five animals along the parkrun route over time with the help of donations from the community. “We will hopefully put one of the Big Five animals at each kilometre of the event,” said Tumiel.

Parkrun volunteer Paul Westgate described the event as a festive occasion. “I started the parkrun a year ago because I was inactive and my friend Wolfgang Jochims nagged me to start,” he said. “

“I love the community spirit and getting up early on a Saturday. It starts my day on a good note and I have made good friends there. I am competitive with myself and wherever I travel, I always find out where the local parkrun is.”

Active Bryanston community member, 80-year-old Jochims, who has resided in Bryanston for 50 years and completed 65 parkruns, described the event’s atmosphere as explosive.

“I have never seen so many people at the parkrun event,” he said. “I love parkrun here in South Africa. People aren’t snobby and it’s like one big family there in Bryanston. That’s what I enjoy most about it. I have been to parkrun in England and it was totally different. People were very snobby there.”

Dan Don Ndlovu registered the second fastest time ever at the 200th Bryanston parkrun event, arriving at the finish line in a time of 00:15:22.

Details: To contribute to other big five animals for the parkrun route, make a donation on the forum website on www.becf.co.za