Purple Wave Great Manchester Run 2024!

Countdown to race day! All the important information you need.

Your dedication and enthusiasm contribute to the vibrant spirit of this event, making it a memorable occasion for our university and the city of Manchester. We can’t wait to witness the sea of purple flooding the streets, embodying the unity and pride that define The University of Manchester.

Purple Wave Tickets

Booking tickets for our event is a breeze; head over to the Students’ Union website. There, you have the flexibility to select the ticket that suits you. Should you decide to switch gears and embrace the role of a fundraiser, we’re delighted to accommodate the change by seamlessly transferring your ticket to a complimentary fundraising option.

• Buy tickets for Great Run 10k

Your token and race number

You will hear from Great Run soon with regards to redeeming your token and registering your place in the 10k or half marathon. Your token will be included in an email Great Run sends to you from support@info.letsdothis.com titled ‘Your place in AJ Bell Great Manchester Run 2024’. Please make sure you respond to their email and follow the instructions provided; this will trigger them to send out your race pack. Please make sure you use the email that you registered with when you bought your ticket.

You will need to add ‘1’ to the product and then move to the next page, where your details will be populated. In addition to this you will need to add some runner information and then submit this.  

Once you have completed this process, your race pack will be sent to The University of Manchester. Please redeem your token by 14 May.

T-shirt and race pack collection

For those who have not run the event before or those who feel they need a new one, we will also be providing the Purple Wave T-shirts to all Purple Wave entrants.

We’d love for you to collect your t-shirt before race day. If you like, you can send a friend or colleague to collect your t-shirt; they will need to know your entry name and provide proof from ‘Let’s do it’. 

If you are running for a charity and want to wear your t-shirt, that is fine, but we ask that you at least wear a purple shirt on the start line before the race so we can get maximum impact in the photos and on the TV.

We’re looking forward to meeting you at the collection points before the date of your race. T-shirt collection dates and times are listed below:

Meet point  

As we celebrate our 200th birthday, we’re excited to make this event a truly special event! We can’t wait to see you at the Pendulum Hotel on Sackville Street. Here, you’ll have the opportunity to collect your t-shirt and race pack, drop off baggage, catch up with friends, ask any questions you may have, use the toilets. 

Timing

Join us at the Pendulum Hotel starting at 8 am to prepare for this fabulous day! We encourage you to arrive early to get the most out of this experience. 

Refreshments  

The café in the hotel is easily accessible from the room we are meeting in and there is an outdoor area attached. This would be perfect for a pre-race coffee or a post-race bite to eat.  

Take a look at the Pendulum Garden Bar Menu. 

Find out about the drinks menu. 

All the water in the hotel taps is drinking water and you will also be able to have your water bottles refilled at the bar in the café. Please note there are not water fountains at the venue.  

Baggage drop

At the Pendulum, you may leave your personal things in a designated location. Since there isn’t much room here, please bring as little as possible.  

PLEASE NOTE BELONGINGS ARE LEFT AT OWNERS RISK  

There is no parking available at the hotel; instead, we advise you to take the bus, bike or lift wherever possible. If you’d like to park at one of the University carparks, you can access Charles Street.

See how you can access car parks near and on campus.

Support on the day

We’ll provide massages and physiotherapy both before and after the event. These services are complimentary, but if you wish, you can contribute to Manchester’s life-changing research.

Face painting 

To complete your racing attire, our volunteer face painters will be on hand to add some go faster stripes or the famous Manchester Bee.  

Cheer point 

On the route, racers will pass the Purple Pit Stop on White City roundabout in Old Trafford, also known as the ‘Cheer Point’.   

You can find this at https://what3words.com/funny.social.spike 

This position allows supporters to cheer our runners at 2.5km and on the way home at 7km. 

The point is easily accessible from Cornbrook tram stop and from Manchester city centre you can catch any tram in the direction of Eccles, Altrincham, or East Didsbury and alight at Cornbrook. A short walk up to the main road and turning right, then supporters should see all the purple.

We’d love people to bring whistles, bells, pan lids, wooden spoons, or anything else that can create a noise to cheer on the runners. We will have a gazebo and music to keep our runners motivated.   

Send your supporters to this point if they plan to watch the event so that we can have the biggest impact possible.  

The cheer point will be ready to welcome our first half marathon runners; this time will be confirmed soon. The team will be there to cheer throughout the day until our last runners have passed through at 3pm. 

Route maps

Find out more about the route maps and you’ll know exactly what to expect. 

• 10K Great Manchester Run route map
• Half Marathon Great Manchester Run route map.

Start times

Event timetable 26 May 2024. Please not that times are provisional.

• 8.30am Half Marathon Start Time
• 10K Start Time

Volunteering for Purple Wave events

We are looking for cheer point managers, general volunteers and cheerers, and people to help with set up and breakdown. All opportunities to volunteer can be seen and joined here.

Find out more