Thames Hare & Hounds - Museum of World Athletics
Plaque name: Thames Hare & Hounds
Location: Thames Hare & Hounds Clubhouse, The Richardson Evans Memorial Playing Fields, Roehampton Vale SW15 3PQ, UK.
Plaque awarded: 09/12/2021
Reason: Plaque Category – Competition
Based in Roehampton in southwest London, the oldest adult cross-country running club in the world was established in 1868.
The club was created by members of Thames Rowing Club at Putney who were looking for a way to keep fit during the winter. They staged three ‘Thames Handicap Steeplechases’ on Wimbledon Common between 7 December 1867 and 21 March 1868.
Out of these races, Thames Hare and Hounds emerged, staging its first run on 17 October 1868 in the form of a paperchase, a game which originated in Shrewsbury School in 1819.