This is the first mapping of global running participation. The analysis covers 107.9 million race results from more than 70 thousand events from 1986 to 2018. This is by far the largest study of race results in history.
I was stunned after reading this article of the decline of the participation of this sport, especially one that I love so much. However, besides that jaw dropping stat, there were many more reveals from the study, metrics such as who has the better runners on average around the world. The fact that women are gaining ground on males and my personal favorite that runners on average are 39 years of age.
One interesting finding was that people are not so much running for the gold but for their mental health now, which is great news. Running is a sport that has set me free from many standards of this society and I am glad people are now using it to escape the mundane daily tasks of our lives. I hope this article finds you and encourages you to get out the door for a run or three. Nothing better than a long run in the hills on a brisk Saturday morning.
Skim through the article by Jens Jakob Andersen and let me know what you think. Are we humans on average getting slower? Do the Swiss own the 5K? and how far would you travel for a race?
-Coach Rocha
