On Saturday, November 15th, London’s running communities and spectators descended upon the Lee Valley Athletics Centre in London for Open Lanes, a high-octane track night designed to bring together athletes, creators, and runners of all abilities and backgrounds.
The free event was brought to life by Swiss performance brand On in partnership with Cape Town’s Community Track Club, reflecting a shared commitment to inclusive community running.
From 4:00 PM to 10:00 PM, London’s run crews and their communities came together to enjoy a packed evening of action. The proceedings kicked off with an inclusive coached track session led by Spanish national record-breaker and 2:22 marathoner, Laura Luengo. This was followed by an exciting race schedule featuring multiple pace groups for the Rapid 2K race, as well as a series of 800m relay races with men’s teams, women’s teams, and mixed teams. The 200m track delivered sharp bends, hard accelerations and high drama as teams competed to be first to cross the finish line.
Over 500 people attended the event, with 200 trying out On’s latest launches: the Cloudboom Strike LS, Cloudboom Strike, and Cloudsurfer Max, before testing them on the track in 12 races.
The night culminated in an electric Mile race with a twist, a dramatic finale where runners had to strategically hold on to a Pacer for 6 laps of the indoor track, before an all-out sprint finish for the final 400m.
Open Lanes was born from On and Community Track Club’s shared desire to create a vibrant track experience for London’s running community that’s 100% inclusive and true to the spirit of community running so that everyone feels they belong in the lanes.
