Reality Rules Parkrun Launch 3 October 2026

[IwantToRetire]

Today was another Parkrun Saturday and like every weekend the achievements by women was demoted by men running in the female category.

We are hoping to change this! In only a few weeks time, we will debut Reality Rules Runners UK at Parkrun. We hope that many hundreds (hopefully thousands) of you will join us to send a clear and strong statement to Parkrun about the huge support there is for fairness and sex-based categories at their events.

All sports events are responsible for putting on fair events. This includes free, volunteer run, community events like Parkrun.

So please tell people about Reality Rules Runners UK, as we are hoping to attract lots more supporters before our debut at Parkrun on 3 October.

Thank you! 🙏

https://realityrulesrunnersuk.substack.com/p/another-parkrun-down-only-a-few-weeks

Came across this by chance, so dont know more than this!

They are also on X for anyone on X https://x.com/RRRunnersUK

Yes, I could see that, but it's the language confusion that has caused so many issues. Sorry if I sounded rude, didn't mean to.

No worries, I understand your point.

Gender as a sporting category, unlike sex or age or weight, is intrinsically meaningless and unfair. It groups random individuals who have nothing physical in common.

So either use sex, or don't have a category at all.

Thanks for @ArabellaScott for defending the inclusivity point I also was making, and all the usual regulars on here.

R.e. Empathy someone mentioned. I genuinely don't understand why trans woman wants to enter Park Run in the women's category, rank first and get women course records, pissing people off in the process.

Why is this? It's not compulsory to rank, you don't need a barcode, there's often anon runners. Happy to hear an explanation.

It does, but then you can't even get a rough approximation of sex-based data, and will only be able to compare your performance to the whole field (including all the men), or (possibly) to other "PNTSs" (not actually sure if that option is available or not!). So the majority of women, who would like to be able to see how they did against other women, will naturally be discouraged from doing that.

Then there's also the fact that many people signed up some time ago, when "gender" still meant "sex" and the only options were male, female and (I think) PNTS. A lot of those people, I suspect, still aren't aware that Parkrun is now claiming their choice of "Female" (or "Male") was actually them stating an "internal feeling of womanyness" (or something?) rather than saying they're, y'know, female.

If PR was being honest about this, they'd first of all need to ask people whether they have a "gender identity" at all, as I don't believe most people do (when it's made properly clear that this doesn't just mean "yeah, I know I'm female, it's bloody obvious!", but some sort of separate, innate feeling - I'd love to see them try to define that!), and then only if they then say they do have one, ask what it is. If that was genuinely done, alongside a separate option for actual sex, I'd be prepared to bet the "No gender identity" group would end up the biggest...

Ah. So we've gone from 'I'm calling this extremely sexist position 'middle ground' but I don't like having all the issues pointed out and having to actually face what I'm doing' with reproach at being argued with and leaving....

to flat out batshit.

Oooookay.

There really isn't much going for this argument whoever tries it, is there?

I genuinely don't understand why trans woman wants to enter Park Run in the women's category, rank first and get women course records, pissing people off in the process.

Why is this? It's not compulsory to rank, you don't need a barcode, there's often anon runners. Happy to hear an explanation.

It is hard to think of one, honestly, beyond the emotional experience of 'I am being a woman, in a labelled women's situation, given exclusive access to things other men are not, and I'm outwomaning them and getting lots of recognition'. And inevitably, going on the evidence from men with gender identities' own words, there is enjoyment in doing down and trampling on women, and knowing and enjoying that those women cannot stop them, because there is a whole lot of sexist belief about the rightfulness of the superiority and priority of people born with a penis and XY chromosomes. (As demonstrated on this thread, with hurt confusion at women arguing back about it.) And about the proper place of a woman. And about the fun for a man in controlling and taking things off women.

Whole lot of things I could mention alongside that, beta males and sexual fetish just some of it, but I won't since I am trying to find the more generous framing.

And no one having fun in that way has the faintest confusion on whether sex is binary, and which sex wins by standing on which other sex.