Meet the people who run the world one letter at a time

How far would you be willing to travel for a run?

A 15 minute drive to a park, beach or trail might not be worth the hassle for some.

For others, distance is no object.

Japan, London, New York and Berlin are well-established as marathon destinations.

But there is an another ever-expanding collective of enthusiasts globetrotting in search of a more modest distance - the 5k - in several hard-to-reach places.

Parkrun is a network of free, weekly, 5km runs taking place in more than 20 countries.

It was founded in the UK in 2004 and as it expanded in its early years, runners might have skipped their home run for a week to visit another event across town.

Today, every person registered has their own barcode which is their passport to any one of 2,300 events worldwide.

There are no prizes, no medals, no frills - running in a different country simply earns you a flag icon on your Parkrun app profile.

That same app presents other challenges, a popular one being the 'alphabeteer', where runners try to attend a run starting with every letter, except X.

Runners often visit Poland or the Netherlands, where names beginning with Z are more common. Queen's Parkrun in Belfast attracts visitors in search of the elusive Q.

Groups from the UK and Ireland are already plotting how to get to Parkrun's newest events, launching soon in the British Overseas Territories of St Helena and the Cayman Islands.

Frank McLoughlin's first Parkrun was in Malahide in 2013 and he seldom ventured outside Dublin for years.

He has gone from being "dragged" by his daughter to rising in the middle of the night in time to catch a red eye flight to reach a start line somewhere in the world by 9am.

He has visited many places he said he would never have considered before.

"Namibia is a beautiful place, the desert runs into the sea. And Eswatini had the friendliest people, they were so nice and delighted to see tourism," he said.

"Singapore is one the most fascinating places I've been to, but would it have ever been on my radar? Definitely not."

He added that his holidays can revolve around Parkrun.

"Last night I was sitting here and I said I think I'm going to go to Boston for Thanksgiving, so four of us booked. We will have a few days in Boston but the starting point was Parkrun."

Frank always planned to go to South America when he turned 60.

"I realised when I had done everything I wanted in South America, I could have two weeks left. I could go to South Africa or Australia, but it was cheaper to have five days in Japan and five in Singapore," he said.

"But that entailed leaving my hotel in Buenos Aires at 5am on a Wednesday, flying to Lima, then New York, then Tokyo, then Kumamoto and getting two buses, all for a Parkrun beginning with the letter Y."

While people sometimes question the expense, Frank said he spends his socialising money on Parkrun.

"I'm not as mad as some people think I am," he added.

For Clara Geraghty from Dublin, Parkrun tourism is a family affair.

No-one in her family had heard of Oulu, a city in Finland just 60 miles (100km) from the Arctic Circle, but they have all been now.

After the run, Clara and her children, aged 19, 16 and 12, stayed to experience remote Finland, visiting snow hotels and being pulled on a sled by huskies.

"We can take a plane to a run but then pick adventures that go along with it. It is educational, fun and active. The whole thing is just lovely," she said.

"There's so many places that you can go to that have Parkrun. We went to Canada and also visited Niagara Falls and Toronto and were welcomed by the people and the community. It's always more than just a Parkrun."

She added that with her children all keen running tourists, it was a common interest that would keep them close.

"I feel it will be part of our family lifestyle, that we can always meet somewhere. It will be our go-to for a long while."

Peter Tucker, from Ballyclare, County Antrim said after moving to Northern Ireland in 2021 he used Parkrun to explore.

He has also visited countries including Australia, Finland, Italy and the Netherlands. Semi-retired, he has his sights set on more destinations.

He lists his highlights as running in Seattle, Vancouver and Calgary after a trip through the Canadian Rockies, visiting all the Nordic countries in a three week period and seeing the Great Barrier Reef and Grand Canyon.

"We flew to Las Vegas and drove to Cedar City in Utah, 150 miles on the interstate for the extra run on Thanksgiving. The trail is an extension of the Grand Canyon," he said.

For Parkrun's regular Saturday morning event days later, he flew to New York.

His future plans are a mix of modest trips - Inis Meáin in the Aran Islands - to the more adventurous.

"I've signed up to flights to South Africa and am on the list for St Helena, assuming we get enough people for a charter flight," he said.