<P> The Great North Run (branded the Simplyhealth Great North Run for sponsorship purposes) is the largest half marathon in the world, taking place annually in North East England each September . Participants run between Newcastle upon Tyne and South Shields . The run was devised by former Olympic 10,000 m bronze medallist and BBC Sport commentator Brendan Foster . </P> <P> The first Great North Run was staged on 28 June 1981, when 12,000 runners participated . By 2011, the number of participants had risen to 54,000 . For the first year it was advertised as a local fun run; nearly thirty years on it has become one of the biggest running events in the world, and the biggest in the UK . Only the Great Manchester Run and London Marathon come close to attracting similar numbers of athletes each year . </P> <P> The 1992 edition of the race incorporated the 1st IAAF World Half Marathon Championships . Martin Mathathi holds the current men's course record with his run of 58: 56 minutes in 2011 . Mary Jepkosgei Keitany's women's course record of 65: 39 minutes, was set in 2014 . In 2017, Mo Farah became the first person to win the event four times consecutively . </P> <P> The Great North Run starts in Newcastle upon Tyne on the A167 road, on the edge of both the city centre and the Town Moor . The route heads east and south down the motorway section, around the eastern side of the city centre, then crosses the Tyne Bridge into Gateshead . It heads around the eastern side of Gateshead town centre, then at a roundabout turns east and heads down the A184 in the direction of Sunderland . After 3.5 miles, the route turns off the A184 and heads north - east towards South Shields . 2.5 miles later, the route reaches the southern side of Jarrow and it turns east down the A1300 . The route passes through the south of South Shields (through Harton and Marsden) until it reaches the seafront just over 3.5 miles later, where it turns north up the A183 . The last mile of the route runs along the seafront road to the finishing line at South Shields . </P>

Who came first in the great north run