Popular Aviemore half-marathon called off after running out of volunteers
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Badenoch and Strathspey’s biggest sporting event in terms of participants is having to be cancelled this Autumn because of a lack of volunteers.
Such was the demand that numbers for the last Aviemore half-marathon held in October, last year, had to be capped at 750 runners and at 500 entrants for the 10K which is traditionally held the day before.
The weekend-long event is based at the Badaguish Outdoor Centre at Glenmore and an important fundraiser for the facility.
The Speyside Trust - which operates the complex - is confident that the event will return in its entirity next year.
Trust chairman Martyn Crawshaw said: ”It is with regret that the trust has had to cancel the Aviemore Half Marathon and 10K events this year.
“We know how popular the races are with athletes, their families, and supporters but challenges in maintaining our own volunteer base for the event means we could not be sure of organising a successful event in October 2024.
“We are confident of having everything in place for the 2025 event and plan to publish the event dates and details early in 2025 to assist with the athletes training and planning.”
The Strathy understands that the trust cannot guarantee at this point in time that it will have enough volunteers in place to allow the event to be safely managed and has had to reluctantly take the decision now given the level of organising involved.
Difficulties in finding volunteers in general to marshall events across the nation was highlighted at the VisitScotland National Event Conference last week.
Al Dargie, chairman of Aviemore Community Council, said: “I'm disappointed to hear of the cancellation of this year's half marathon and 10K events at Badaguish.
“I know only too well the level of support these events require but also what a great events these are having competed before.
“I hope that the Speyside Trust can work with other community groups to build a larger volunteer base to support the event in the future and bounce back next year.”
