It's great. It's in the south. It's a 10-mile run. It can only be the Great South Run and the 32nd event sets sail on Sunday 16th October, starting and finishing on Clarence Esplanade, Southsea, taking competitors on a thrilling run through history as they pass landmarks including the Historic Dockyard, HMS Victory, and Southsea Castle, along with breathtaking views of the Isle of Wight.

Of course, this Great Run promotion is far more than an elite and mass participation 10-miler. The Great South Run is part of an incredible weekend of running that also includes the Great South 5K and Junior & Mini Great South Run on Saturday 15th October. 

There's still time to get signed up. Great South 5K entries close at 10:00am on Friday (14th October) and are open to anyone aged 14+ on race day; Great South Run can be entered until 10:00am on Saturday (15th October) and the minimum age limit is 16 years – no upper limit!

As you might expect for a seaside race, Great South Run will start in waves! Elite females are away first at 10:15am, followed four minutes later by the wheelchair and visually impaired competitors. The elite men start at 10:35am with the first of three waves of the masses.

Organisers are promising 'a party from start to finish' in the Great South Run, with new on-course entertainment zones including the optional and slightly crazy Run Thru high energy zone, with 50 metres of noisy mayhem. Runners have the option to Run Thru or skip this zone and stay focussed on their own race pace. DJ Trucks and Heart Radio will also be pumping up the volume and raising the adrenalin on the route and a new Apres Run zone will help with the recovery. Get a little flavour of it all right here:

Runners should look out for special guest Katherine Switzer – the first woman to officially compete in the Boston Marathon in 1967. The USA running icon is 75 now and has a marathon best of 2:51:37 at Boston in 1975, having won the New York City Marathon the previous year.

Portsmouth Historic Dockyard is the home of the Mary Rose and to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the raising of the flagship of King Henry VIII the Junior & Mini Great South Run will have an 'Under the Sea' fancy dress theme this year and we are promised a visit by Henry VIII and one of the original dive team who helped raise this world-famous ship from the sea.

Previous results and reports at runABC South race listing here

Full race information and 2022 entry details at Great South Run here

Image courtesy Great South Run