Warrnambool Running Festival adds new events to 2022 edition

The festival will run over two days (Saturday and Sunday) instead of one, with the additional junior and all-abilities races to be held on Saturday.

On Sunday six and 10-kilometre races will be run as well as the half-marathon, which starts and finishes at Flagstaff Hill.

"Parents, guardians and carers can run with the juniors and enter into the same event," race director Mark Gavin said about Saturday's new event additions.

"It becomes a really inclusive event for everyone to come and try.

"It adds to the festival atmosphere over two days rather than one day."

Gavin said all three tracks showcased some of the most picturesque views Warrnambool had to offer.

"All the three courses on the Sunday use the promenade and they all cover some really pretty areas of Warrnambool through Lake Pertobe playground and out Port Ritchie," he said.

"We're really showing off Warrnambool during the run. I don't know of any other festival that gets to run through a golf course either. So that's rather unique to Warrnambool."

COVID-19 has undoubtedly impacted attendance levels of sporting events in the past year but Gavin said he was "pleasantly surprised" by registration numbers for the festival.

As of Tuesday morning he said they had around 240 people entered across all events which was good by comparison to other "struggling" events.

"We're pleased with the numbers, we'd love to see more but we still are pleasantly pleased, it's a good number of people participating," Gavin said.

The race director said there were strong runners in each event due to the prize-money on offer for winners. The first male and female receive $500 in the half-marathon, $250 in the 100-kilometre and $100 in the six-kilometre races.

Registrations for the festival's races close on Saturday and can be completed at https://www.wboolrunningfestival.com.au/

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