You may be aware that that there has been an issue at this weekend’s North Tyneside 10k related to people swapping race numbers without informing the organisers. Although this may seem to be a trivial issue it can have serious consequences and Tyne Bridge Harriers supports UKA in a zero tolerance approach to number swapping. Many new members may be unaware of this issue so the committee thought it was worth highlighting the issue and impact it has.
Firstly, runners entering using other people’s places can have a serious impact on results. We all run for the achievement, whether it be finishing a race, beating our personal best or competing at the front of the field. If runners wear someone else’s numbers then they cheat other runners of achieving their goals. The NT 10k was won by someone wearing someone else’s number and 5 of the top 30 women were actually men. This has serious impacts on results and deserving runners miss out on prizes. But, more importantly, if runners are wearing other people’s numbers and there is a serious issue then this impacts the medical care they receive and communicating to their family members.
TBH will not support the unauthorised swapping of numbers and runners who do this will risk their affiliation to UKA and their membership of the club. Let’s compete clean and fair.
TBH Committee
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