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October 22, 2020 at 1:43 pm
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2021 date postponement statement

Revised date statement

We are sorry to announce that the Brighton Half Marathon is postponed from 28thFebruary 2021 to Sunday 27th June 2021 following the recent escalation of Covid-19 cases and change in Public Health guidance.

We opened the 2021 event in July in a mood of optimism following the relaxing of three months of national lockdown. With restrictions once again tightening and likely to be in place for months longer, we need to change our plans to ensure that runners, spectators, volunteers and staff are all safe at the event.

Bill Puddicombe, Chief Executive of The Sussex Beacon, organisers of the event commented:
“We have taken this decision to protect public health. The half marathon is always a celebration of fitness, community and support for the voluntary sector. We want to ensure that 2021’s event will be the inspiring event that people have all come to expect. It will almost certainly not be possible in February.

“We understand that runners will be disappointed at the delay but of course, all bookings will be honoured for the new June event – our “Midsummer Half”.

In reaching this decision we have consulted extensively with the Local Authority and other key stakeholders as well as reviewing the latest guidelines and advice of the national sports bodies on delivering a safe and secure COVID compliant event.

Ian Taylor, Events Manager at Brighton & Hove City Council said:
“The City Council fully supports The Sussex Beacon in their decision to move the Brighton Half Marathon to later in 2021. It is a great community event, staged by an important local charity, and we believe that a date later in the year will give the opportunity for the event to take place with a good number of runners and with public support.”

Although we are all hopeful that current efforts to minimise the impact of COVID will enable some easing of restrictions next year, we will be working on plans to deliver a safe, secure and socially distanced event.

As well as focusing on the start/finish area of the event, we will also be considering the potential for staggered start times for participants.

To enable our planning to progress we also feel it is sensible at this stage to limit the number of overall participants we would normally accept, with the potential (via a ballot) to release more places at a later date if we feel it is safe to do so.

We will be emailing all 2021 participants today with their options for 2021, which you can also view here.