First run on June 26th 1983


The first Two Castles Run from Warwick Castle to Kenilworth Castle took place on Sunday June 26th 1983, organised by a group of young Rotarians spearheaded by Rotarian Peter Butler. It was originally classified as a ‘fun run’ over six miles and had two classes: Juniors (over 12 and under 16) and Seniors (16 and over). The first run had approximately 450 runners and around £2000 was raised through charitable donations collected by the runners.

Running through Warwick in 1983. Notice the young runners 12–16 years old.

The Run was later modified to a 10 km run and the age of juniors raised to 16 years to meet the requirements of UK Athletics. Originally the runners were limited to a maximum of 600, rising to around 800 in the new millenium, then increasing to the current numbers of around 3,000 entrants. The maximum in 2010 is 4,000.