27th August 2008

Pierce O’Callaghan And Bill Reynolds Join Runbritain.com

27th August 2008

 

The Management Team of RunBritain.com is delighted to announce that Pierce O’Callaghan has been appointed as the new Business Manager and British Association of Road Races (BARR) President Bill Reynolds has been co-opted onto the RunBritain.com Management Group (formerly Road Running Leadership Group (RRLG)), with specific responsibility for licence standards and events grading.

 

32-year-old O’Callaghan, who is currently Communications Manager for the European Athletics Association based in Lausanne, Switzerland, will take up his new position with effect from 1st October. He is a former Irish international athlete and race organiser and was Events Manager withscottishathletics for 18 months.

 

Reynolds takes up his position with immediate effect.

 

RunBritain.com Chair Geoff Wightman said: “Everybody who knows Pierce will understand that he will be bursting with ideas. These will enhance the supporting structure that we want to provide to road races, organisers and road runners. It’s a really great ground breaking project which will enable us to make significant investment into road running for the long term and these initiatives will help safeguard the sport against challenges on medical, safety, police or other organisational grounds.

 

“Bill Reynolds is the guru on risk assessments, licences and grading. If you combine the depth of his experience with the innovation that is being generated elsewhere within the RunBritain.com team we should be able to create something that will stand the test of time.”

Pierce O’Callaghan said:“I feel very privileged and humbled to be taking on this role and I have no doubt that RunBritain.com will be the blueprint for the way that federations and major stakeholders interact with road runners and races and invest in the future of the sport for years to come. My feelings on the job are quite clear. RunBritain.com is open to ideas, open for business, and open to embrace the two million or so British runners currently pounding the streets on a regular basis.”

 

The RunBritain.com website portal for Race Directors, with online resources on medical, police, safety and other common organisational issues, went live in July and is being actively promoted to the 2000 race organisers, combining EA Regions’ licensed events and Celtic Territories, around the UK. The RunBritain.com members’ site is scheduled to launch on 1st January, to allow the new Business Manager to shape the final content of the site.