Cirencester’s first parkrun – the 500th event in the UK – at the Royal Agricultural University on Saturday was a great success.

The event came together after four years of trying to find a suitable venue for the run.

But now, thanks to the endeavours by volunteers and support from the Royal Agricultural University and the Bathurst Estate, the run became a reality.

On the day, 208 runners braved rain and soggy ground in a celebration of fitness and community spirit. The team of volunteers worked from the early hours to ensure this first event went off smoothly and safely.

The parkrun phenomenon has been growing rapidly for the past 13 years. They involve free, weekly, 5km timed runs around the world. They are open to everyone, at no charge, and are safe and easy to take part in.

The Cirencester event was brought together by a group of volunteers, supported by seed funding from supporters throughout the town. This funding buys timing equipment, high-viz jackets for volunteers and other important infrastructure.

The team is led by event directors Nicky Whelan and Sara Jeapes and the first event run director was Simon King.

King said: “Today was a brilliant success – we were delighted to see so many runners take part in this first event.

“We’d like to thank all of them, as well as our volunteers, the Royal Agricultural University and its staff for all their support.

“We are only able to run the event thanks to seed funding provided by the town’s running clubs and other supporters. Thanks to everyone who contributed – we are delighted to see the event take place.”

Whelan added: “We are so pleased to launch the Cirencester parkrun. So many people have worked incredibly hard to make this a reality.

“We’d like to thank them, and to everyone that came to support us today. Next week we go again, and we can’t wait! We welcome everyone to come along and walk, jog, run or volunteer.”

The next run will take place on Saturday 10th February at 9am.

For more details on the Cirencester parkrun, including how to volunteer, visit its dedicated website http://www.parkrun.org.uk/cirencester/