EA 5 Mile Virtual Relay – Prelim Round Closes Jan 10th
All the best
Bob Page
Club runners – sign-up now to compete in our England Athletics Virtual Road Relay Competition 2020/21!
At a time when traditional road relays aren’t possible due to Covid-19, England Athletics is hosting an exciting free-to-enter virtual road relay running competition to give runners and clubs from across the country the chance to compete against each other… with the finalists getting an opportunity to represent England in a battle for the title against teams from the other Home Countries!
The Virtual Road Relay Competition 2020/21 will take place in three rounds across the following dates:
- Round 1: Qualifying Round (Saturday 26 December 2020 – Sunday 10 January 2021)
- Round 2: National Round (Friday 12 February 2021 – Monday 15 February 2021)
- Round 3: International Round (19 March 2021 – 22 March 2021)
Click here to enter via OpenTrack!
The competition is open to all England Athletics registered runners aged 15+ and is across a 5-mile race distance. Mixed teams of eight (4 x men / 4 x women) are required to complete legs of five miles per runner.
Clubs can have an uncapped number of their runners competing in the Qualifying Round – with their overall result calculated by the times of their fastest four men and four women. (NB. Any single gender clubs wanting to enter can contact for help in pairing-up with other clubs to form a mixed team).
The competition is hosted via the OpenTrack virtual running platform – with runners able to complete their legs individually (adhering to government and England Athletics guidelines, social distancing and competition rules) and then upload their run data as evidence of their run.
Runners can only submit one result per runner. Results can be submitted by the individual runner and Open Track will automatically calculate the top four men and women for each club once the competition window closes and results are verified.
The 50 fastest clubs from the Qualifying Round will progress to the National Round (Round 2), from which an overall winner will progress to the International Round (Round 3) – gaining the chance to pull on England kit and compete for the title against teams from the other Home Nations.
Feeling competitive? Click here to enter the competition and run for your club!
Scroll down for more information on the three rounds, the entry process and rules.
Competition Rounds
Qualifying Round (Round 1)
In the Qualifying Round (Round 1), clubs can have an uncapped number of their runners enter into the round in order to ensure that as many runners as possible can take part and enjoy the competition. Clubs’ finishing positions will be based on the 4 x fastest men and 4 x fastest women from each club.
The Qualifying Round will take place during the window of Saturday 26 December 2020 – Sunday 10 January 2021 (giving plenty of flexibility to runners over which day they choose to run their five mile leg).
Click here to register for the Qualifying Round – runners can register to enter anytime up to the 10 January. All runs must have been completed by 23:59 on 10 January with run data submitted by the deadline of midday on 11 January.
National Round (Round 2)
The 50 fastest clubs from the Qualifying Round will progress to the National Round (Round 2) – taking place between Friday 12 February and Monday 15 February. Clubs that qualify to compete in the National Round will again be able to field an uncapped number of their registered runners – with finishing positions based on the 4 x fastest men and 4 x fastest women from each club.
Runners from clubs that qualify to compete in the National Round will need to register for this round via OpenTrack (entry link will be made available once results have been published from the previous Qualifying Round). Runs for the National Round must take place between 12 February to 23:59 on 15 February and run data submitted by the deadline of midday on 16 February.
An entry link for the national round will be made available in due course after the Qualifying Round.
International Round (Round 3)
The winning club from the National Round will be selected to compete in the International Round – where they will compete against the best teams from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales to be crowned the Virtual Road Relay Competition 2020/21 champions!
Clubs will need to name their runners (4 x men and 4 x women), who will need to register for the International Round and complete their runs from 19 March up to 23:59 on 22 March (with run data submitted by the deadline of midday on 23 March). Full details of the international round will be released in due course.
Rules and Further Information
Summary of key competition details:
- Registration is through OpenTrack – click here to enter.
- Entry is open to members of England Athletics only (as the other Home Nations have a different system for entering and verifying results) and entrants should run for their first claim club.
- The competition is open to entrants aged 15 and up in line with UKA rules.
- Teams – made up of 8 individuals – 4 x men and 4 x women (an uncapped number of numbers from each club can compete in the Qualifying and National rounds – with the fastest 4 x women and the fastest 4 x men scoring from each participating club).
- Race Distances – 5-mile legs.
- Performances should be submitted online through the OpenTrack portal following the rules outlined below.
- Athletes must make their runs PUBLIC on their Garmin/Strava etc profile to allow results scrutiny.
- Performances submitted that do not comply with the rules set out will be marked as non-scoring in the final results and will not be eligible as qualifying performances.
General Rules:
- Distances must be run between 00:00 on the first day of the competition round and 23:59 on the last day of the competition round.
- You may only submit one result per runner.
- Results must be submitted by the deadline of 12:00 (midday) the day after the competition round has ended, using the instructions on the entry page.
- Runs should be named ‘EA Virtual Relay’.
- Safety – Athletes MUST avoid popular running/walking routes or busy parks.
- Be considerate to other people by keeping a 2m (minimum) distance at all times when passing in public.
- Do not drive somewhere to run unless absolutely necessary – stay close to home or your usual training venue.
- ALL runs must start and finish at around the same point (200m leeway given for GPS errors) – either lapped or out and back.
- Lapped off-track courses must not include laps of less than 1km.
- Runs must take place off track.
- Club group runs organised and supervised by a UKA qualified coach are acceptable for results purposes.
- All current government guidelines regarding physical distancing must be strictly adhered to. Any changes to government guidelines will be implemented immediately.
Disclaimer
Runners MUST ensure they compete in a way that adheres to the letter and spirit of government rules and guidance on social distancing. Consider the time and route you choose in order to minimise the impact on others.
If you are unwell, injured or have any symptoms of Covid-19 or have recently been in contact with someone with symptoms do not take part.
Entrants should understand that when participating in any exercise or exercise programme, physical activity, or virtual competition, that there is the possibility of physical injury to you and others. You should always assess the suitability of the exercise/running location, route and equipment being used in order to ensure no risk is posed to others or yourself. If you engage in a specific exercise or all elements of a programme, physical activity or virtual competition, you agree that you do so at your own risk and you are voluntarily participating in these activities, as well as assuming all risk of injury to yourself. In doing so, you agree to release and discharge England Athletics from any and all claims or causes of action, known or unknown, arising out of the participation in such activity and out of the use of any associated guidance.