Lee Peck Media has handled the communications for the ABP Southampton Marathon’s biggest event to date.
As the sun shone down on Southampton yesterday (April 22) a record number of people took part in the ABP Southampton Marathon, Half Marathon and 10k. A huge 10,000 people signed up for the event and Lee Peck Media was in the thick of the action coordinating the media.
The agency has been working to promote the event since the winter months and the hard work paid off, with television, radio and print journalists all reporting from the event. Coverage has been achieved in media outlets such as Meridian, BBC South Today, BBC Radio 2 and of course the Southern Daily Echo.
Lee Peck Media also lent its design expertise to the event, with creative director Alistair McKinlay Brown’s artwork proudly on the t shirts, medals and other event material.
Account director Laura Downton said: “We look forward to the ABP Southampton Marathon every year and 2018’s event was bigger than ever before. We’ve been thrilled with the response from the press. Working in collaboration with media and generating interesting stories of real value has reaped real rewards in terms of coverage. We can’t wait to get start on next year’s event.”
An estimated 30,000 spectators and army of more than 850 volunteers cheered on runners yesterday as the growing event celebrated its fourth successful year.
It’s the second year that the event has featured a full marathon distance and organisers say this year’s event was so popular that they’re already considering making the ABP Southampton Marathon even bigger in 2019.
Nikki Rees, one of the race directors, said: “The number of people taking part in the full marathon distance rose significantly this year so we’re looking at allowing even more people to take part next year.
“We also saw unprecedented interest in the 10k, with all the places full weeks before the event. It’s early days but we’re exploring creating 20 per cent more 10k spaces next year. If that happens it’ll make ours the biggest 10k in Hampshire, possibly even the south.”
Alastair Welch, ABP Southampton Director and the event’s headline main sponsor, said: “For the fourth year we are proud to sponsor this event and we welcome the boost in visitors to the city. The atmosphere has been fantastic and the mile makers drawn from community groups across the city have once again ensured tired runners kept running with a smile on their faces.”
Chris Rees, another of the race directors, said: “The ABP Southampton Marathon really is gaining a reputation for the friendliest and most well-supported mass running event and we couldn’t be prouder. A huge thank you goes out to our runners, staff, volunteers and the members of Southampton’s community who make the event a success year after year.”
The date for next year’s ABP Southampton Marathon has been set for April 28, 2019 and early bird entries are available now on the official website.