New fuel for Great North runners

Dec 15 2008 by Chris Robinson, The Journal

HALF marathon runners taking part in next year’s Great North Run will be fuelled by a new drink after a contract with Lucozade Sport came to an end.

The drinks company had been the official nutrition partner at more than 30 running events nationally since 2005 quenching the thirst of hundreds of thousands of runners.

But yesterday bosses at parent company GlaxoSmithKline confirmed that the three-year partnership had come to an end.

Nova International, organisers of the Great North Run, denied that the top brand was dropped for a rival due to the credit crunch.

Instead it confirmed that the contract would not be renewed and that a new deal was close to completion with a rival energy drinks brand.

A spokesman said: “Agreements come to an end. Their contract was up and they will be replaced with a different contractor. We are looking forward to working with a new brand in the near future.”

However Nova International has extended the contract of private health group Bupa to 2013 as the main sponsor of its events.

A spokesman added: “We have just extended Bupa’s contract to 2013.”

Over the past three years Lucozade Sport have given away 450,000 bottles to help hydrate more than 375,000 runners.

Competitors registered with Great Run events were sent an email by Lucozade Sport on Friday, thanking them for their support.

It added: “This year though marks our final year of involvement with this fantastic series of events.

“We hope for all the miles that you have covered in training and on race day, we've made your running journey that little bit easier.

“We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone for making the last three years so much fun and hope that we continue to be your running partner.”

The first Great North Run took place on June 28, 1981, with 12,000 runners. This year the 13.1 mile event attracted 52,000 starters.