Girls’ Run 2023

Fast and Female hosted our annual Girls’ Run alongside the Women’s Soap Run on May 27th and 28th. 

This year’s Girls Run was bigger and better than before. With updated distances, additional programming and exclusive Girls’ Run apparel, we empowered 177 participants over the 2 days. Some participants have been here since the beginning, sharing how they have collected all different colours of F&F shirts through the years, and they love coming out each time. We can’t wait to continue the cycle and see these participants make their way in the leadership positions. We were supported by 15 REAL Role Models. These women make such a difference in our programs.
The Run 

This year we brought in many new additions, the first being an update to our run distances. In past years, we had offered a 500m and 2km distance. Based on feedback from our participants we decided to increase these distances to 1km and 2.5km to better suit our participants. 78% of participants said that the run was their favourite part of the day!

New Programming 

We introduced 2 new programs at this year’s event.

1. Leader In Training (LIT) Program: For participants aged 13-17, participants were paired with a REAL Role Model, as a mentor. LIT’s worked alongside their role models to help lead a group of Girls’ Run participants in activities. We had 13 LIT’s doing an amazing job as leaders already. We look forward to seeing these leaders continue to develop their skills in and out of sport.
2. Add-On Program: This new addition provided runner’s of the Women’s Soap Run an option, so that they didn’t have to worry about picking up their loved one after the Girls’ Run. Participants got to stick around with REAL Role Models to continue inspirational chats, fun movement and crafts. Participants made signs to cheer on Women’s Run runners and continue the theme of inspiration by getting to see so
   many women crushing it at all distances. Shout out to the wonderful REAL Role Models that helped support this program. They are what made this program so awesome! 

Exclusive Swag 

As always, Fast and Female was set up selling extra swag. But this year, we featured some exclusive and new items. T-shirts with a limited edition Girls’ Run design, created by Toronto artist Corissa Maclellan, were a hit! Even more exciting was brand new scrunchies upcycled from our t-shirts created by The Crown Co. We were excited to talk to Girls’ Run participants and Womens Soap Run participants and see so many people sporting F&F gear all weekend. Keep an eye out on our website for more fun and limited edition apparel!

This year’s event had an overall star rating of 4.5/5, and an average confidence level of 8/10.

We are so happy with this year’s turn out and the impact we were able to have on so many self-identified girls in the community. Stay tuned to hear from this year’s event coordinator and Fast and Female REAL Role Model, Laura, about her experience with Girls’ Run. 

Check out the flickr album from Girls’ Run: