History

The first Maroubra Fun Run was staged by the Maroubra & Districts Chamber of Commerce in 1996 – the year of the Centenary Boston Marathon.  Richard and Philip Walsh of Walsh’s Village Pharmacy in the South Maroubra Shopping Village are both keen runners, and provided most of the energy and organisation for the Fun Run that year and every year since.

There were 190 participants in 1996, and a small community Fair. Now there are over 1000 runners, walkers and wheelers every year, and another 5000+ for Oktoberfest: it is one of the biggest community events in the Maroubra calendar.

The start and finish has always been at the South Maroubra Surf Lifesaving Club.  Encouraged by the success of the event in the early years, other local community organisations began to provide support – in particular the Surf Club with Oktoberfest, the Maroubra Lions Club with the stalls and amusements and the Rotary Club of Maroubra with volunteers, the traditional barbecue and a generous financial contribution for “naming rights”.

Various other local clubs and organisations have provided volunteers and assistance over the years. We note in particular the support of Randwick SES and Randwick City Council.

 

A Google search of “Maroubra Fun Run” returns various fragments of history, including a 2006 video on myspace and a 2017 video on Youtube . (If you have any other historical pics or links we can add to this history page, please contact Paula.