Staff under starter's orders for Sunderland running festival

A team from Siglion will be on their marks to take part in the Sunderland City 10K run on Sunday, May 1.

Both races start and finish at the Keel Line at the former Vaux Brewery site in the city centre – the first location to benefit from the company’s £100million-plus programme of regeneration on Wearside.

Olympic medallist Steve Cram, whose company Events of the North is organising the runs, said: “Our races take runners past many landmarks in Sunderland and from this year will start and finish in an area that both reflects the city’s heritage and symbolises its current phase of regeneration.

“We’re delighted to be working with the company that is responsible for many exciting developments in Sunderland and it’s great that some of Siglion team will be pounding the streets with thousands of other runners.”

Siglion’s chief executive John Seager, a keen runner who has completed a number of Great North Runs, will be part of the team taking part.

He said: “It’s really good to see people out running around Sunderland. It’s an interesting course that takes in the coastline and it’s a picturesque run.

“Both events start and finish at the Keel Line, which runs across Keel Square and the site of Vaux Park site as well. Over the next three years, the estimated 4,000 runners and 4,000 spectators who come into the city for the event annually will be able to see the progress happening at Vaux Park.”

Siglion is encouraging as many people as possible to enter the runs and will be organising its own inter-company challenge for staff who want to put teams forward for the event.