Boasting 32,000 participants, the Women’s Fun Run is back this Sunday, and with a vengeance. The popular competition, all of whose places have been taken this year, aims to promote the inclusion of women in sport and play an active part in fighting against and preventing breast cancer, as well as combat the gender violence and social and educational inequalities that women face on a daily basis. Adopting the slogan: “Tu dorsal suma” [Your number counts], as borne on its shirt numbers; the race will lending recognition to the proactive role played by the Marea Rosa [Pink Tide run] and the constant support it offers all solidarity causes carried out throughout the year on the national level.

The presentation ceremony this morning saw the Councillor for Sports, David Escudé, and the spokesperson for the Women’s Fun Run, Henar Calleja, present the new features at this year’s edition. In addition, tribute was paid to several top-ranking figures with extensive, successful careers in women’s sport: the former basketball player, Laia Palau, the paralympic weight-lifter, Montse Alcoba, and the journalist Cristina Cubero. Participants at the press conference included Ángela Sánchez, the director and manager of the Spanish Cancer Association; Sivlia Bautista, the coordinator of the Ca l’Aurèlia Women’s Association; Rosa Olmos, the secretary of the Spanish Metastatic Breast Cancer Association; Sergi Grimau from Special Olympics Catalunya and the winner of the 2021 edition: Jessica Bonet.

Minutes before its start, the pink tide run will unfurl the biggest pink bow in history (50 metres long). The hope is to have an impact on the attitudes of the population, paying tribute with respect and admiration to all the women in the world who are or have been afflicted by breast cancer. This will be followed by official recognition of two top-ranking Catalan women athletes: the paralympic swimmer, Sarai Gascón, and the 400-metre-sprint athlete, Laura Hernández.

And, what’s more, as part of the work promoting knowledge of the disease, the Women’s Fun Run will also be joining the #laMquefalta movement, launched by the Daiichi Sankyo / AstraZeneca Alliance in collaboration with the Spanish Metastic Breast Cancer Association (ACMM), which aims to raise social awareness of one of this type of cancer’s most invisibilised and commonly uncomfortable issues: the metastatic stage.

All the women runners will be wearing shirt numbers publicising the free-phone helpline for victims of gender violence, 016.

The Runner’s fair and the fun run’s solidarity value

Participants will be able to collect their shirt numbers and T-shirts on 4 and 5 November from the Runner’s Fair, located this year at the La Mar Bella Municipal Sports Centre, from 10 am to 8 pm.

The fair will be keeping up the traditional solidarity spirit typifying it year after year: the Spanish Cancer Association will be donating 75,000 euros at the end of the circuit; this will be followed with financial aid given to the three foundations focused on protecting women in various areas: Wanawake Mujer, the GEICAM Foundation and Clara Campoamor; and Pulseras Rojas will be putting up a special Banco Santander stand and in the finishing-line area where people will be able to donate ponytails and thereby contribute funds for women undergoing cancer treatment lacking sufficient resources.

Even so, these will not be only solidarity initiatives being carried out this year: the Women’s Fun Run also features 8 local solidarity projects on the circuit and, what’s more, every initiative will receive a further 50% of its total proceeds as a donation from the Z Zurich Foundation.

Online version

Besides the physical race, participants have also been given an opportunity to sign up to the online version and collaborate from any part of the world.