Study Finds 28 Percent Of Runners Started During The Pandemic

The organization surveyed 3,961 current runners to see how many began during the pandemic and to learn about their motivations for running, whether they’ll participate in races and how they differ from those that began before COVID.

Key findings:

• 28.76 percent of current runners started running during the pandemic;
• These new-pandemic runners are 19.82 percent less likely to participate in in-person races over the next 12 months;
• These runners are 115.37 percent more in favor of virtual races than pre-pandemic runners;
• Motives for running are to change physical health as the primary motivation for 72 percent of new-pandemic runners, up 18.03 percent from runners who began running before the pandemic.

Additional findings are here.