ONE of the reasons I love distance running is because it’s accessible for me. You can rock up to Parkrun to run or walk 5k, or represent your club in a muddy field, potentially racing alongside elite runners at cross-country events on a freezing Saturday afternoon. At face value, a runner should need little more than a pair of trainers or spikes to participate, regardless of their motivation.

However, despite the boom in mass participation running, with over 5.5 million people believed to have completed a 5k Parkrun event and the London Marathon recording a 105 per cent increase in entries from 20-29-year-olds, athletics is becoming an increasingly expensive sport for competitive athletes.

Distance runner Ben Connor recently declined to represent Great Britain at the European Road Running Championship in Belgium, as athletes were asked to pay a fee of up to £1,100 to cover travel, accommodation, food, kit and staff costs by UK Athletics (UKA).

Connor wrote in an Instagram post: “Representing your country is a privilege, and in athletics it is earned via a qualifying process, which, while not always perfect, gives everyone the same chances to gain selection.”

He further explained why he declined the opportunity to represent GB, stating: “Coming from a working-class background, I don’t like the potential precedent being set where people, especially junior athletes of the future, don’t have the same development or competition opportunities because of finances.”

Controversy and mismanagement

Since 2019, UKA has appointed three permanent chief executive officers. Zara Hyde Peters resigned before starting the post in 2019 due to safeguarding issues relating to her husband. Joanna Coates resigned in 2021 following concerns raised by several leading GB athletes about the health of athletics to World Athletics president Seb Coe. 

In 2023-2024, UKA reported a record £3.7 million loss in 2022/2023 and a £1.4m loss in 2023/2024. UKA’s cash reserves plummeted from £2.2m to £430,000 between 2021 and 2022. Ed Warner, chair of UKA from 2007 to 2017, says the governing body’s current financial problems are due to “unnecessary politicking, pursuit of vanity projects, timidity and simple sloppiness.”

Despite selling 50,000 tickets for the London Diamond League in 2023, it cost UKA close to £500,000 to hold the event due to a lack of sponsorship revenue and a broadcast contract. UKA’s long-term broadcast contract with the BBC was allowed to run down and expire, and UKA was forced to pay some of the BBC’s production costs to ensure the London Diamond League event in 2023 was televised.

UKA suffered an 8 per cent (£1.7m) funding cut from UK Sport in 2024. This was despite a 10 per cent increase in funding from the government to UK Sport to support British athletes. The current CEO of UKA, Jack Buckner, appointed in 2022, stated that there would be a shift in Olympic and World Championship selection policy, with smaller teams focusing on “big hitters.”

It appears that this shift has had a knock-on effect on funding opportunities for athletes to compete in competitions below world level. Although Buckner denies this change in approach relates to finances.

The rise of the super shoe

Another trend in the world of distance running which is potentially creating barriers for competitive athletes, is the need for expensive “super shoes.” Super shoes are trainers with carbon-fibre plates designed to enhance propulsion and energy return during running. Distance runners wearing super shoes perform significantly better than runners in trainers without carbon-fibre plates. Research by Dominy and Joubert in 2022 found that carbon-fibre shoes can improve running economy by approximately 2.7-4.2 per cent, enhancing running efficiency and speed.

However, super shoes come at a price. The Adidas Adios Pro Evo 1 shoe will set you back approximately £450, while the Nike Vaporfly 4 costs around £240. Although unconfirmed by Nike, online reports suggest that Vaporfly shoes cost around $25 to produce. Anecdotal evidence from competitive distance runners suggests the performance effect of the carbon-fibre plate lasts between 100 and 150 miles.

This seems a reasonable evaluation, given that sponsored elite runners change their carbon-fibre race shoes frequently. What was once a level playing field at the start line, based on training, nutrition and physiology, is now influenced by whether an athlete has access to expensive trainers, which may not be affordable for all.

Solutions

Whilst UKA has made great strides in improving its financial situation, such as securing a long-term deal with Nike in 2023 —which reportedly saved UKA from going bankrupt — more needs to be done to develop alternative revenue streams. Exploring how other sports have innovatively increased interest and revenue would be a good starting point.

Considering the success of docu-series such as F1’s Drive to Survive and other forms of personalised on-demand media may help UKA connect with the large number of 20 to 29-year-olds who are currently enjoying running, attracting new revenue streams. Gen Z are hungry for on-demand content with which they can develop authentic connections. As running creates many motivational stories likely to resonate with audiences, UKA should seek to capitalise on this more strategically.

It is also important that UKA and the national governing bodies maximise income from the many mass participation running events that take place, redistributing funds to athletes in need of financial support. At the time of writing this article, 1,120 events are listed for entry on the England Athletics website. Asking unaffiliated runners to donate towards supporting athletes who have difficulty accessing, participating in and competing in the sport could be one way of generating funds, potentially covering much of the funding lost from UK Sport.

Rugby and Northampton Athletics Club chair Adrian White gains a great sense of reward from how his club is able to support athletes who struggle to afford purchasing equipment, as well as travelling to training or events. White believes: “Athletics is an empowering thing, enabling kids from all backgrounds to realise their potential and take on the world.” Although he appreciates that not all clubs are in a position to offer as much help as Rugby and Northampton, which may prevent some from accessing, participating in and remaining in the sport.

White also expressed concerns about regular yearly increases to athlete affiliation and club registration fees with the national governing bodies.

“When is it going to end? Where is the money going?” White feels UKA should create a national fund, widely known to athletes, parents and clubs, that can be applied for to support athletes facing financial barriers to competing and achieving their potential.

Finally, UKA must budget and commit, as part of its strategic “Athlete-First” theme, to fund all costs associated with representing GB or any home nation for athletes. Putting athletes who have often trained for years in a position where they may not be able to compete at an elite level due to financial barriers is morally wrong.

As Ben Connor said, “Representing your country should be a privilege.” However, the increasing cost of running, coupled with limited financial aid from athletics governing bodies, is presenting athletes with the dilemma of whether they can afford to accept this honour.