Great Birmingham Run anger over claims revised course distance ‘was not even 12 miles long’ – Birmingham Live

Police and Great Birmingham Run organisers were forced to shorten the route after failing to find the owner of a car parked outside Cannon Hill Park.

More details emerged this morning, Monday, of the safety alert which prompted the decision to axe the park stretch of the route on Sunday.

The decision took the event below half-marathon length – and several of the 11,000 who took part claimed the route was even shorter than the officially revised 12.1-mile distance.

In its first statement on the incident, West Midlands Police said officers checking the race route before it started spotted a vehicle outside the park and could not find the owner.

It was later declared safe after sniffer dogs were sent to the scene.

The force said in a statement: “Police officers patrolling the race route before the event spotted a vehicle parked on the course outside Cannon Hill Park.

“Efforts were made to contact the registered keeper but the vehicle was not moved.

“As a precaution the race was re-routed to avoid the vehicle and to ensure the safety of participants. The vehicle was later checked out by a specialist police sniffer dog; it was concluded there was no danger to the wider public.”

Organisers initially told runners the route had been changed because of flooding caused by Sunday morning’s torrential rain.

The real reason for the change did not emerge for several hours.

The Great Run Twitter account posted on Sunday: “We apologise to everyone who had their Great Birmingham run experience affected today.

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“We were advised of a suspicious vehicle on route and after consultation with police the route was altered. The vehicle was declared safe later in the day.”

It’s full statement said: “Following today’s Great Birmingham Run we apologise to everyone who had their event day experience affected by the reduced distance of the course.

“This morning we were advised of a suspicious vehicle in the Cannon Hill Park area of the route.

“Your safety is our number one priority and after consultation with the police we altered the route to avoid Cannon Hill Park and Edgbaston.

“A decision, again in consultation with the police, was made to progress with the event over the reduced distance and we can assure participants and spectators that their safety was not compromised at any point.

“At a later point in the day the vehicle was subsequently declared as safe. We’ll be in direct contact with all participants in the coming days, thanks for your understanding.”

In another twist, some runners said the route was even shorter than the revised 12.1-mile distance.

One shared the details of her run on Twitter, with an image showing that she ran 11.07 miles.

Another tweeted the organisers, saying: “No explanation of the “safety reasons” or why no contingency measures were taken.

“Told route would be 12.1 miles; actually 11 miles. No announcement given. Sorry – your organisation was woefully lacking today.”