Bath Half Marathon postponed for third time in two years
This year's race was originally supposed to happen this month, but is now scheduled for October
Last updated 24th Mar 2022
This year's Bath Half Marathon has been postponed for the second time.
Originally it was supposed to happen this month but it was pushed back to May because of pressures on the highways network
It's now been pushed back again to October 16, partly because of the same issue, but also because staff have been impacted by coronavirus.
Organisers have published a statement on the event's website.
"The event sector has been particularly disrupted by Covid and we have had to overcome many challenges over the last two years," it reads.
"Despite our best endeavours this disruption, including recent staff absence due to Covid, loss of some key contractors and suppliers, and issues arising from the Cleveland Bridge closure, have had a cumulative impact on our small team, which we are struggling to accommodate at this late stage in our event planning.
"So, we have reluctantly decided it would be sensible and responsible to postpone the event until the Autumn."
This is not the first year the race has faced disruption.
The 2021 edition was cancelled, with Running High Events saying that time around that it could not happen because of national restrictions for large scale events and issues on the roads.
That decision also came after the race had been postponed once.
The 2020 event in contrast did go ahead on March 15, but that decision sparked significant controversy with many other sporting events being cancelled because of coronavirus.
At that time the race director said he had not received any advice saying it could not go ahead, both Premier League football fixtures and those in the English Football League were all called off that weekend.
Many runners chose to cover the distance on their own on different routes, rather than taking part and risking catching the virus.
Organisers have apologised again for this latest postponement.
"We know many of you personally and know how hard everyone trains every year for the event and are genuinely sorry for the disappointment caused," the statement reads.
"We will be emailing all entrants next week with details of your entry deferment and refund options."
They are asking anyone who was due to run for a charity, to still do so on the new date in October.
"After two years of dealing with the impact of the pandemic this was absolutely not what we wanted to happen," the statement continues.
"We have loved planning and delivering the event since 2000.
"We all want to get ‘back to normal’ and the Bath Half Marathon is a reminder of so much that is good about the city and the people that live here and we now look forward to returning on 16 October."
In a scathing response, Bath and North East Somerset Council says it is "very surprised and disappointed" that the event has been postponed again.
"For the sake of complete clarity, there is no reason at all from the council's perspective why this event should not go ahead," their statement reads.
"Indeed, although it is a big ask, if any other professional organisation wished to run an event on 29th May, we would work with them to see if it is possible."
The council says they had been working "extremely hard" to facilitate the event, which included accommodating a change of route, a change of date and a change of start point, "all at the organiser's request".
The council also says the newly announced date of October 16 has not been agreed to.
"We are also surprised the organiser is advertising a date next year and is accepting people’s entries without having agreed the 2023 date as possible with the council," it says.
"We know the organiser’s decision will be frustrating to all the people training for the half marathon, and all the charities and good causes relying on the sponsorship."