The organisers of the Cardiff 10K & 2K Fun Run, FRONT RUNNER EVENTS, today announced the postponement of the race that is scheduled for September 4th.

This is a blow for the runners who have paid their fee and trained hard for the event. It appears there will not be a refund of the entry fee and indeed it will not be deferred or transferred to another future or rescheduled event.

For KIDNEY WALES The Cardiff Met Cardiff 10K is their flagship fundraising event. Over the years the money raised has helped them to provide support for Welsh kidney patients, who number over 20,000 across the country, and also their families in numerous important ways.

During their tenure as race organisers, Kidney Wales were forced to cancel previous events due to the pandemic, this latest postponement could have an impact on their fundraising efforts.

David Martin-Jewell, Managing Director said in a statement…………..

“We are devastated that we are unable to host this year’s Cardiff 10K event.

Since taking over the event in November 2021, we have been looking forward to bringing this race back to the streets of Cardiff. We’ve liaised closely with all event stakeholders but delivery the event has proven far more challenging than anticipated to achieve giving the logistical and operationally situations that we have encountered.

Despite having explored a number of alternative options and scenarios in an attempt to mitigate the effect of circumstances which are sadly beyond our control, while also maintaining the nature and heritage of this race, we simply have not been able to find a viable solution.

Front Runner Events have already committed to a number of large orders in relation to the event, which are required due to the lead-in times from suppliers. Unfortunately, therefore, we cannot defer, transfer or offer refunds to runners due to the monies committed or already spent. However, there will be a virtual event to enable runners to make the most of their training and fund raising efforts.“

David added……

‘As frustrating as this is, we were not expecting so many challenges across such a wide range of areas. We are confident that the event will continue to grow when it returns in 2023”.

The virtual event will take place from 9am Sunday 7th August and will end at 7pm on Sunday 11th September. Full details of the virtual event have been sent to all runners by email.

All corporate entrants will be contacted in due course to discuss all options.

We thank you for your patience and understanding.

Front Runner Events

We have had messages into our office and, understandably, there is a lot of social media activity around the announcement. Runners, and there are something like nine thousand of them, seem particularly upset that their £30 plus entry fee will not be refunded or transferred to another event. As David Martin-Jewell said in his statement…..

“Unfortunately, therefore, we cannot defer, transfer or offer refunds to runners due to the monies committed or already spent.”

We have requested an interview with David to clarify the situation. We’ll let you know when we get a response.

It was back in March of this year, and after a two-year absence due to the Covid-19 pandemic, that the newly named THE CARDIFF METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY CARDIFF 10K & 2K FUN RUN was announced as ‘back on’.

Having been involved with the event as an associate body in 2018, Cardiff Met, which was named the UK and Ireland University of the Year 2021 recently by Times Higher Education, signed title sponsorship for the 2019 event with the aim of further developing and promoting health and wellbeing across Wales and the UK.

Ben O’Connell, Cardiff Met’s Director of Sport, said at the time……

“As a leading university for sport, our sponsorship of this prestigious event aligns perfectly with our wider health and wellbeing strategy.” 

“At Cardiff Met we are passionate about sport and the positive difference it can make to our communities. Our vision is for Cardiff to be an active City where everyone can have a lifelong enjoyment of sport. We are achieving this through our mission of tackling inequalities through Sport and Physical Activity. 

“The Cardiff Metropolitan University Cardiff 10K & 2K Fun Run is an excellent opportunity for our students, staff and of course the wider community to sign up to a challenge, while at the same time following a fantastic route through our picturesque capital city.”

David Martin-Jewell, managing director at Front Runner Events said……

“This will be the third year of us delivering the Cardiff 10K and 2K fun run in association with Kidney Wales our charity partner for the event. We are delighted that we will be continuing working with the Cardiff Met and I’m excited to see what we can achieve together this year and in the future.”