Much More Than Your Average Run-of-the-Mill Running Club

Words Anthony Maguire

It started in May last year when a few Coogee locals got together to start running regularly. Since then, the Coogee Run Club has grown into a community powerhouse with almost 400 members.

Coogee residents Hannah Gandevia and Tara Meakins, both in their mid-30s, founded the group to help achieve their own fitness goals.

“On the first run, there were just three of us,” Hannah told The Beast, “but then it took on a life of its own as we saw an opportunity to help others reconnect with neighbours and invest in their health coming out of COVID lockdowns.”

The group now meets five times a week with five kilometre runs from Coogee Beach on Tuesdays and Thursdays, a speed session in Queens Park on Wednesdays, a Centennial Park run on Saturdays and a ten kilometre Malabar Headland run on Sundays. Once a month there’s a newbies jog where participants run 2.5 kilometres.

At the end of the runs, they hang out together refuelling with a takeaway meal from a local restaurant or café. Once a month they enjoy one or two beverages together at a licensed venue.

“It’s evolving into a social club with a bit of running on the side,” Tara said.

“A lot of our members are from the UK and Ireland and new to the area, so they love the opportunity to join a ready-made social group with plenty of physical and mental health benefits.”

If you’re interested in joining the Coogee Run Club, you can head to the group’s website at coogeerunclub.com. You can also follow the club on Instagram, @thecoogeerunclub.

Friday 26 May

Coogee Beach

11am

Celebrate Australia’s oldest, continuous living culture on earth. Witness First Nations culture and history unfold in traditional and contemporary dance performances.

Join us in taking the next steps in our nation’s reconciliation journey.

1300 722 542 randwick.nsw.gov.au