With 2026 fast approaching, it’s a good time to reflect on parkrun’s evolving digital direction, the progress made, and the work ahead to ensure that statistics are available to motivate and engage the community.
In September, parkrun announced that the 5k app, developed by Michael Clayton, would be brought in-house. This became official on 1 December, with Michael joining the parkrun staff team and ownership and future development of the app moving to parkrun. This represented a change in direction from earlier in the year, when former CEO Russ Jefferys had indicated that parkrun intended to develop its own statistics website. Instead, parkrun has chosen to adopt an existing app that already displays a wide range of statistics and is well established within the community. It has been stated that the app will remain unchanged for now, with future development shaped through consultation.
At the start of October, Lil Duggan was appointed permanent CEO. In correspondence with me, she reiterated that parkrun recognises how valued statistics are by the community, confirmed that there are no plans to remove data from the 5k app, and stated that any future changes would involve meaningful community engagement.
Also in October, at the Cheltenham Book Festival, founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt reportedly stated publicly that removing stats had been a mistake, and that the acquisition of the 5k app provided a route to bring some of them back, though not necessarily on the main website. This was in clear contrast to his earlier comments about statistics and reflected a more positive acknowledgement of their value.
Later in the month, parkrun’s Annual Report acknowledged the reputational impact of removing information from event websites and committed to improved consultation, communication, and stakeholder engagement going forward.
As the 5k app became officially part of parkrun, it is worth clarifying that it currently displays some statistics that were removed from parkrun, including course records, fastest athletes, first finishers, age category and age grade records, and club results. However, there are still significant omissions, including:
- full age category league tables
- sub-17 and sub-20 lists
- age category records at junior events
- attendance records
- fuller lists across several existing categories
These remain the key areas that we continue to advocate for being restored and displayed alongside the existing statistics.
In October, developers using parkrun data were contacted about changes to API access and data protection policies. While official API access is now being offered, concerns have been raised by several developers around approval criteria and restrictions on funding models, including donations. parkrun has stated that the intention is not to shut down third-party apps, but to ensure appropriate data protection and governance. A new Global Head of Digital and Data Transformation has been appointed. Discussions between parkrun and developers are ongoing.
One third-party platform of particular note is parkrace.net, which has recently launched an app alongside its website. It goes significantly further than the 5k app in the breadth of statistics and analysis it provides, and has proven popular with those who value detailed statistics. Given that parkrace.net was developed in direct response to the removal of statistics from parkrun’s own website, many in the community would be extremely disappointed if such independently built tools were curtailed, particularly while those same statistics are not yet available through official parkrun channels.
In early December, former patrons of the 5k app were invited to share their views through a survey, helping to shape its future development. On 16 December, parkrun announced the first new features since taking ownership of the app, including additional event map layers, improved attendance charts, and various bug fixes, with further engagement planned.
While statistics delivered via an app are less visible and accessible than via a website, this nonetheless represents a positive and encouraging direction of travel. We are not yet at a point where all previously removed statistics are officially available again, and restoring them fully remains important. We recognise that parkrun’s evolving GDPR and data protection strategy forms part of this wider picture, and that these responsibilities need to be balanced with the clear value that statistics bring to motivation, engagement, and community. We will therefore continue to work constructively with parkrun to press for these statistics to be reinstated and embedded as part of their digital strategy going forward.
Thank you, as always, to everyone who continues to follow and support this work, and to all those who help promote the cause in different ways — particularly those who continue to wear campaign T-shirts at events. If you would like to be more involved, you are very welcome to join the Facebook discussion group “parkrun – Bring Back the Stats!”, where we share updates, coordinate efforts, and discuss developments as they arise.
Merry Christmas, and all the best for 2026.