RUNNERS will literally put their best feet forward as a charity event returns for a second year.
And organiser, former boxer Charlie Schofield, hopes the 10km jaunt can help deliver a knockout blow to inactivity in Tameside.
Take up for Sunday, June 4’s Schofield Fitness Tameside 10k is already looking like it will exceed last year, when 70 people took part.
A partnership with Cancer Research UK means everyone will be raising funds for the good cause.
And this is not for elite runners, anyone can take on the course, which begins at Ultimate Fitness, on the corner of Tame Street and Wagstaff Street in Stalybridge, and ends at the Rising Moon pub, on Matley Lane.
“It’s not one of these runs that’s aimed solely at elite athletes – it’s not like that at all,” explained 29-year-old Charlie.
“I look at Tameside and I want to get the community moving more, I want everybody to live a healthier life. That’s why anybody can join up to it.
“You can be any age, any ability or level of fitness, it doesn’t matter. We can get the community that little bit tighter and get everyone moving together.”
Charlie, a former English super middleweight boxing champion, started the run last year and hopes to make it a big part of the Tameside community.
Finishers will be entertained while local businesses will be backing those at the 10am start, with participants encouraged to arrive at 9.30am.
The 29-year-old added: “It takes a nice, pleasant route. There’s a flat 5km, with a little bit of an incline – you can’t escape a hill around here – and it finishes at the Rising Moon.
“When we get up there, there’ll be a singer on and a few performance acts and a nice bit of food and drink for everyone to enjoy, to celebrate the finish line.
“On the morning, local businesses like Nonna’s and Gladstone are setting up stalls. It’s small businesses helping small businesses, the community coming together.
“Everybody’s going to benefit from this run and it’s for charity. We’re doing stuff for the community here.
“I’m going to keep this going annually and hopefully people catch on to it and it encourages them to live a healthier life, to get moving.
“I wanted to put his out there as a goal for people to train towards, to encourage them to get moving more.
“I run boot camps and boxing camps but this is something people can do in their own time. Just exercising outside and I want it to grow year on year.
“If people see it, it’ll grow over time.”
After hanging up his gloves, Charlie is now focusing on growing participation and making Tameside fitter.
And the link with Cancer Research UK did not take much thinking.
He told The Correspondent: “Everybody knows someone – a friend or a family member – who’s been touched by cancer.
“In one way or another, everyone’s got a cancer story, everyone can relate to it.
“And now I’ve retired as a boxer, I can get busy with the community now and I really enjoy helping others.”
ENTRY to the Schofield Fitness Tameside 10k costs £30 and participants receive a Schofield Fitness t-shirt, participant medal and training plan, as well as discount codes for 15 per cent off at Sports Shoes.
Anyone wishing to get involved can get in touch by e-mail at schofieldfitness@outlook.com, through Instagram @schofield_fit or Facebook message by visiting www.facebook.com/people/Schofield-Fitness/100063645905984.