About this Event
For the second year running we will be hosting the Welsh Athletics Own The Night Campaign. After the hugely successful campaign from Welsh Athletics in 2025 we are proud to support this years iniviative across wales on the night the clocks go back and the darkens falls earlier.
Women’s running across Wales is at an all-time high, with more females than ever before regularly lacing up their trainers to enter mass participation races, join clubs and groups, or to simply run for their physical and mental wellbeing.
It’s been well documented that women’s participation levels in the winter months (particularly in running) decrease due to the darker nights and a nervousness to run in unlit, unsafe locations. According to This Girl Can research, almost three quarters (72%) of women in the UK change their activity behaviour during the winter months and “One in four (24%) ensure to take well-lit routes, almost a quarter (23%) avoid certain areas altogether and one in five (20%) glance behind them to ensure they’re not being followed”. Adding to this a recent report by Our Streets now found that 93% of those surveyed experienced some form of public sexual harassment while running. There is clearly work that needs to be done to ensure that running is accessible and safe for all that want to participate.
We want to change this by empowering women and increasing their confidence to continue to be active from the Autumn onwards. To do this we launched our award winning national campaign, Own the Night, which starts in the early Autumn to raise awareness of women’s safety whilst running. In 2026 there will be a greater focus on allyship and action, with allies encouraged to pledge to support the campaign and opportunities to upskill themselves in how best to support women’s safer running.
The key aims of the Own The Night campaign are:
- Raise awareness of women’s safety concerns when running at night or early mornings.
- Empower women to continue running through the winter months with confidence.
- Educate running communities and the wider public on allyship and practical ways to support women.
- ‘Reclaim the streets’ – encourage groups and clubs across Wales to host a group run on Sunday 25 October, the day the clocks go back.
Come along, lace up and hit the streets of Abergavenny with us along a social 5k route. Bring your brightest kit, reflective gear, headtorches, lights and anything that glows, the brighter the better! Let's get out and own the night together!
Event venue & nearby stays
U-Xplore Abergavenny, High Street, Abergavenny, UK, United Kingdom
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.