Sportsister joined 15,000 women and girls in Hyde park on September 5 to take part in the annual adidas Women’s 5km Challenge.

With near perfect conditions of blue skies and very little breeze, the day could not have started better. Central London was buzzing with sporting activity since it was also the date for the Mayor of London’s Skyride. This all added to the atmosphere, as hordes of women flocked from the tube stations alongside families with bikes and boys attempting to get their BMX bikes through the tube station barriers.

With the race distance being a manageable 5km, there were women of all abilities and levels of fitness from elite athletes to first timers. And it was great to see the likes of Steph Twell lining up in the same event - giving it the same vibe as the London Marathon with professionals leading from the front.

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More event reports on Sportsister:

Race review: Everton 10k ^[1]

Triathlon review: Cheltenham Tri-in-the-Park (July 24, 2024) ^[2]

Event review: The British Gas Great London Swim ^[3]

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The course

This is a nice run that makes full use of the wide pathways of the park, although it was pretty hard to get up any pace over the first 2km due to the number of competitors. Whilst this enforced warm-up is fine on a longer distance, I could see that it was frustrating some competitors who were keen to do a reasonable time. For me, the day was about enjoying the atmosphere, so it was not a problem and to be honest I am not sure how you solve this problem, as it is often the fault of the runners who line up in the wrong section.

The route was pretty flat, although there is a slight incline in the first half and then a short hill towards the end, but nothing too stressful. The nicest part of the course was when it looped back on itself and you can watch the front runners flying through in the lead.

Organisation

This was pretty faultless, there were plenty of toilets, loads of people handing out goody bags, lots of cheery charity support and nice warm-up/warm-down events. It would have been improved with some music at the start though, lining up 20 minutes before the start is always a bore, so a bit of entertainment would have been good.

Would I do it again?

Yes, I think I would, but I would try and gather a bunch of mates to come and do it with me – the day is about women giving it a go and challenging themselves, so more fun in a group.

Good Points:

- Nice uplifting and supportive atmosphere

- Good facilities and organization

- Great location in central London – perfect for making a day of it.

- Pretty course and perfect for novice runners.

Bad points:

- No timing chip! This is very odd in this day and age, even on a leisure run it’s nice to know your time.

- No music at the start meant it was a bit flat at the line-up.

- Volume of runners make it hard to get going.

Want to give it a go?

Plan now for next year www.womenschallenge.co.uk ^[4]. If you need a training plan to get you started, click here to download ^[5] the Sportsister 5KM plan.

Danielle Sellwood, Sportsister
The Women’s Sports Magazine