HSBC Round the Bays has been an annual event in Auckland since 1972, when it was initiated by the Auckland Joggers Club. The first run attracted 1,200 participants and today has grown to be one of the world's largest fun-runs, with over 47,000 registered runners and an estimated 70,000 participants in total. The run is 8.4km long over a flat course that follows the contours of Auckland's Waitemata Harbour. It begins in the city on Quay St and finishes on the waterfront at St Heliers Bay.
The Course
HSBC Round the Bays follows an 8.4km course that starts between Tinley St and the Strand Overbridge on Quay Street in Downtown Auckland and transverses Hobson Bay, following picturesque Tamaki Drive through Okahu Bay, Mission Bay, Kohimarama Beach and finishes in St Heliers Bay.
Timetable
- 9.15am - wheelchair start
- 9.30am - fun run & walk start (first wheelchair entrant to cross line)
- 10.15am approx - first competitor crosses the finish line
- 10.30am approx - prizegiving - presentation of trophies to first male, first female and first wheelchair entrant