Return of athletics and running following UK Government roadmap


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Updated: 24 February 2021

We are pleased to confirm that clubs, groups, coaching and competition can return outdoors from 29 March for both adults and children, in line with the UK Government’s roadmap for easing lockdown restrictions announced on 22 February.

We have outlined in the below ‘athletics and running roadmap’ infographic what this means at each stage. More detailed guidance will be provided once we have received further information from Sport England and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. Please note, all these dates are subject to the UK Government’s four-step roadmap to ease restrictions across England and the conditions which must be met before the country is able to move from one step to the next.

We are working with our partners, facility operators, competition providers, competition licencing bodies and event providers to aid the return to the activity safely and progressively.

Athletics and Running Roadmap

For additional information specific to the return of track and field competition, please see the track and field competition section below

Track and field competition in line with the UK Government’s roadmap

We are pleased to announce that the original calendar released by UK Athletics (UKA) and the other Home Country Athletics Federations (HCAFs) is, to a large degree, intact, within the recent roadmap announced by the UK Government.

We will be working closely with all competition providers over the next few days to confirm dates and events and will provide a more detailed calendar as soon as we can.

The roadmap timelines for competition activity we can release at this moment are detailed in the above table, with the additional following date.

  • 15 March – Licensing opens for track and field competitions. Details on process to follow.

We are also working with British Athletics and the other HCAFs to check officials are available and facilities are open. We will work with officials’ groups to ensure the safe return to competition is in place and with facility providers to encourage them to open in line with UK Government guidance. One key consideration is recognising that tracks will open at different times and that athletes will need training time prior to competing. Coaches and clubs must put the preparation and welfare of athletes at the centre of their thinking when returning to competition. We, and other competition organisers, will aim to balance event planning with this return. Should this timetable change we will let people know as soon as we can.

We strongly recommend a period of training and preparation for all athletes and clubs prior to any competition being undertaken. Only when athletes, coaches, parents and clubs are confident that the training preparation is in place should athletes undertake competition.

Based on the UK Government roadmap, National Championships should be able to go ahead through the summer as well as most fixtures. We will release a more detailed calendar as quickly as we can. All fixtures will be dependent upon officials and facilities and no future change to the UK Government roadmap.

Road running competition

England Athletics, runbritain and the larger road race organisers are in conversation with Sport England and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) about a return to road racing. Clubs and race providers can apply for licenses now via the runbritain website https://www.runbritain.com/

There is information further information available via the COVID-19 pages on runbritain https://www.runbritain.com/covid-19-uk-road-race-guidance which will be updated as further clarification is obtained.

Trail, walks, fell and mountain competition

We are also working with the Trail, Fell and Walks Associations with regards to mapping restrictions that may apply as we go through spring. We are seeking clarity on the definition of ‘formally organised events’ and any travel restrictions that may apply and will update the community as soon as we have this information.


Again, we would like to thank everyone involved in the sport, from clubs, runners, athletes, coaches, leaders, officials, administrators, volunteers, facility providers, competition providers, parents and carers for their continued support, patience and understanding whilst adhering to the UK Government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The physical and mental health and wellbeing of all our members and their loved ones remains the priority throughout this challenging period so it is vital everyone adheres to the UK Government’s national COVID-19 restrictions thus ensuring its four-step roadmap can be achieved successfully.