As darkness fell last Wednesday evening, thousands of enthusiastic runners took part in the Run in the Dark event to raise money for the Mark Pollock Trust and spinal cord injuries.

The 5k and 10k races took place simultaneously in  Dublin, Cork, Belfast, London and Manchester with some unofficial runs taking place in other towns like Wexford. There were even runs taking place in Sydney, New York and Washington.

The Lifestyle Sports sponsored event was a great success, with neither the cold nor rain deterring participants.

Orry O’Donoghue, a keen runner, took part in the Run in the Dark event in Cork and praised its organisation and everyone’s attitude on the night.

“It was very cool. There were over 2000 people at it. There was a great sense of togetherness and everyone was really enthusiastic. There was just a great feeling about the whole thing, it really was a success”.

The event was the brainchild of Mark Pollock, while other runners raised funds for other worthy charities.

“A lot of people raised funds for Alzheimer’s. I did the run for the Irish Cancer Society because it was something close to me”, said Orry.

Funds are still being counted but it is predicted that thousands of euro have been raised by the event.