The annual Manchester Road Race, which is held on Thanksgiving Day, will go worldwide this year as it goes virtual in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A spokesperson for the race said that since participants will use a smartphone app that enables them to run at any location, race officials have been receiving a number of entries from runners in foreign countries.
Participants will run or walk the 4.748-mile distance in "the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, at the site of an old gunpowder factory in Ireland, through the streets of a historic hamlet in Great Britain, and at a seacoast city in the 'Land Down Under,'" the spokesperson said.
Race organizers have already registered runners from France, Ireland, Great Britain, Singapore, Chile, New Zealand and Australia, they said.
They expect to receive more entries from foreign countries before the Nov. 24 registration deadline.
“There is an old saying that when life gives you lemons, make lemonade,” Manchester Road Race President Dr. Tris Carta said in a statement. “We are doing that during the COVID-19 pandemic by sponsoring the virtual race. One of the great things this year is the fact that people are showing their solidarity with us during this crisis by running the Manchester Road Race at places all around the world.”
Participants can run or walk the virtual road race anytime between Nov. 19 to 25. For more information about the race, visit their website.
