MEDAL MIX-UP

Organisers of the Great North Run have issued an apology after mistakenly featuring a map of Sunderland on thousands of runners' t-shirts and medals, instead of the event's traditional Tyneside home. The error affected over 60,000 people and, of course, was effective in winding up plenty of Mags which is always a good thing!

Great Run, the organisers of GNR 2025, said in their statement: “Wear sorry! As the eagle-eyed have already spotted, the shape of the river on this year’s finisher T-shirt & medal is indeed the River Wear. To answer the rumours that this was the route reveal for next year…. sorry to disappoint, it’s a mistake. Lots of people looked very closely at the designs and none of us picked it up. We had Newcastle United stars on the start line and the Stadium of Light on the medal. The Great North Run is truly a celebration of the region, even more so than we had planned. For the 60,000 who ran yesterday, you’ve got the most unique T-shirt & medal in Great North Run history, a keepsake that we’ll be talking about in 44 years’ time.”

Founder and president of the Great North Run, Sir Brendan Foster, added: “I loved the designs for the medal and T-shirt, spent ages marvelling at them, and never spotted the mistake, even when we hung it in Fenwick’s window. I’ve lived on the River Tyne my whole life and I should’ve noticed, but if I’d run the Great North Run yesterday, I’d still be wearing my medal with pride. Thanks to everyone who took part in an amazing event yesterday, nd all the supporters who came out to cheer on the runners. It was a fantastic Great North Run, and we’re already looking forward to 2026, after we’ve brushed up on our geography.”