By Freya Preston & Jasmine Milburn
Creating a vibrant explosion of colour to the Toon, Northumbria Universities sports management students, Matthew and Olly, have worked together in their final year module to bring a colour run to the Town Moor. Along side writing a dissertation, the boys had the challenge of creating a sporting event that would raise money for a charity of their choice- leading them to decide on a collaboration of brightly hued powder and a mix of athletics. On Edge had the opportunity to sit down the the creators of the Northumbria Colour Run to uncover how the event will eventually come to life.
The Northumbria Colour Run will take part of the 2nd of March 2025 at the Town Moor, Newcastle with a 9am start. The registration cost is £15, with tickets to be purchased at runnation.co.uk/r/Colourrun-2025.
A Burst of Inspiration Over a Beer
When we asked about the inspiration behind the colour run, the organisers revealed that the decision was made over a beer. After hearing other groups in their course mainly focusing on ‘5-a-side football’ events, the team decided that they wanted to create an event that would be unique in the city that someone with any ability could participate in. One of the founders explained that one of the reasons they decided on the Colour Run was a nostalgic take from partaking in the vibrant athletic event in their last year in primary school.
Being an event that can celebrate all different abilities and ages, the founders wanted to work with a charity that prioritised these values. The charity the team decided to raise money for was Children’s Cancer North. Children’s Cancer North held a seminar at Northumbria University to inform the students about their work. This discussion helped them to decide of making all the proceeds to go towards supporting children battling cancer.
Overcoming Challenges
Launching the event has proven to be a challenge for the founders, as not only have the team got a dissertation to write, they must also handle the whole event on their own accord. Due to the team choosing a sport without a collaboration of a society at the university, the accessibility to a location for the event was no small feat- costing nearly £500 to hire the Town Moor after contacting the Freeman and the local council.
When this module was revealed to the boys in their first year, they were told “the university will help fund it”, however, the founders have had to scrape the money all from their own pockets and have had “no choice” but to put the price at £15 due to this challenge. They shared that because they didn’t have any links with societies, they didn’t get much availability for freebies, but if they were to put the event on again, they would ideally like to work with some societies and locations around Newcastle.
Improving the Event for Future
Looking back now, the group have realised many of the other groups have been assisted with their event by societies or the student union and have realised that much of event organising is based on who you know and how well networked you are. By being well-networked its much easier to raise awareness about the event through word of mouth which not only increases the number of participants but also the number of people who can offer things at the event itself such as brands and companies.
One of the societies they would consider collaborating with would be the running society. This may open them up to some benefits and funding by the student’s union as well as increasing participation numbers. They are estimating around 80 to 100 people to attend but were initially expecting around 300 so this is definitely something they would try and push in the future.
Beyond The Running
Aside from running whilst being covered in paint, the group have also worked hard to make the event more than just a charity run. They talked passionately about the participant village which will be situated at the end of the course. Collaborating with ‘Fitness Fraternity’ gym, they have agreed to offer some free month memberships to some lucky folks and will be handing out protein shaker bottles too.
Children’s Cancer North will have a stand as well as the local running organisation ‘Runnation’ who will be in attendance. Not to forget the famous RedBull Mini, which you may have seen flying around the streets of Newcastle, will also be parked up offering RedBull’s out to some well-needed participants. Alongside all of this, there will also be a raffle in which some of the prizes are still yet to be confirmed as they continue to talk to more sponsors in the lead up to the event, but we have been reassured it will not be one to miss.
A Lasting Impact
The Northumbria Colour Run is more than just a race; it’s a celebration of community and coming together to support a great cause. You don’t need to be an elite runner to be involved, just someone with a little bit of courage and a top they don’t mind getting a little bit messy. So, lace up those shoes, bring your friends for an experience you definitely don’t want to miss.