Stars line up for the Ruth Strauss Foundation Family Mile at the Vitality Westminster Mile

Andrew Strauss and the England World Cup cricket squad will lead hundreds of runners in a special mile race. 

Former England captain Andrew Strauss will be joined by the England’s ICC Men’s World Cup squad, the Middlesex team and hundreds of people from the cricket world in the Ruth Strauss Foundation Family Mile at the Vitality Westminster Mile on Sunday 26 May.

It is the inaugural event for the Ruth Strauss Foundation, founded by Andrew Strauss in memory of his wife Ruth, who died in December 2018 from a rare form of lung cancer.

The Ruth Strauss Foundation has been set up to provide grants to charities and organisations that specialise in providing psychological, emotional and wellbeing support to both patients and their families, including bereavement services.

Andrew Strauss said: “Ruth loved families spending time together and it will be wonderful to see so many families come together on Sunday 26 May to celebrate her life. I’d like to thank the England squad and everyone else who’s entered for their support for the Ruth Strauss Foundation.”

The Vitality Westminster Mile is the world’s biggest timed mile with events for all ages and abilities. The programme for the day also includes races for adults, schools, The Daily Mile, parkrunners, Special Olympics, the British Age Group Road Mile Championships for runners in the Under 13 to Under 20 age groups, wheelchair and elite races. The Olympians Mile brings together athletes who have competed for Great Britain in any sport in any Olympic Games (summer or winter).

Sir Mo Farah will be there in the morning to cheer on the children and adults taking part in the family waves. Anyone entering the family events may be lucky enough to #RunWithMo as Farah will join in the fun and run in a family event on the day.

Alongside the mile events, the all-day Vitality Wellness Festival takes place in Green Park and is packed with free family-friendly activities including coaching sessions in a range of sports including cricket, netball and boxing, the giant Tumblelator, taster classes in lots of different activities from boxing to yoga, with loads of spot prizes on offer. There are plenty of places to picnic and a range of food on sale.

Race entry is free for children aged 11 and under, £8 for adults (18 and over) and £6 for 12-17-year-olds (there is a £1 reduction for Westminster residents). Every finisher gets a timed result, a finisher medal and a goody bag.