The Go Far Fund is now in its second year, and this round received more high quality applications than we ever expected. Choosing between them was as hard as ever. The three projects we’re supporting in 2026 - Asian Women Run, Runspire Together, and Emancipated Run Crew - all serve as excellent reminders of what exercise can provide beyond the obvious health benefits: a place to belong, and a way to transform how people feel about themselves.

We wanted you to meet them properly, so we asked a leader from each project to tell us about a moment that has stayed with them, what they wish more people understood about their community, and what they’re most looking forward to about the year ahead. Here’s what they told us.

Asian Women Run

For Minreet Kaur, founder and director of Asian Women Run, the moment that captures what the project is about came when a group of women who had never called themselves runners crossed their first finish line together. ‘The pride, encouragement, and genuine sense of belonging they shared reminded me that the project is about so much more than running; it's about confidence, friendship, and feeling seen. It's how this group is changing lives.’

That's the thread running through everything the project does. Minreet founded Asian Women Run to create ‘welcoming, inclusive spaces where Asian women can discover the joy of running, build confidence, and connect with others through movement’ - spaces rooted in community and representation in sport. But she doesn’t want people making assumptions about who that community is. ‘Asian women are not a single, homogeneous group. Our community is incredibly diverse, with different cultures, languages, experiences, and barriers to participation. Creating inclusive spaces means listening, meeting people where they are, and recognising those differences.’ The group welcomes everyone, regardless of background.

For Asian Women Run, the year ahead is about growth. Minreet is ‘excited to welcome more people into the community, create new opportunities for connection, and continue to see members grow in confidence, whether that's taking their first run, achieving a personal goal, or simply finding a place where they feel they belong.’

Learn more about Asian Women Run.

Runspire Together

Paul Hopkins, Runspire’s founder and CEO, has plenty of memorable moments he could point to. But one keeps coming back: a participant who’d had a heart transplant completed Runspire’s Couch to 5k programme and went on to compete in the British Transplant Games. ‘It perfectly sums up what Runspire’s about,’ he explains. ‘Helping people achieve things they never thought were possible, one step at a time.’

Runspire Together runs beginner-friendly running, walking, and Nordic walking sessions for people who might be inactive, lacking in confidence, or feeling isolated. The idea, Paul says, is to help people ‘become healthier, happier, and part of a welcoming community where no one is left behind.’ What people often get wrong, he adds, is where the difficulty lies. ‘Many people assume running or walking is the hardest part, but it isn’t. The hardest part is walking through the door for the first time. Our community is full of people who have faced illness, anxiety, loneliness, or a loss of confidence, and they’ve found friendship, support, and a place where they belong.’

This year, with the Go Far Fund’s support, Paul hopes to ‘welcome hundreds more people into the Runspire family, train more volunteers and continue creating communities where people don't just improve their fitness; they build friendships, confidence and a healthier future.’

Learn more about Runspire Together.

Emancipated Run Crew

When we asked Denise Stephenson, ERC's co-founder, for a moment from the project that has stayed with her, she had seven years of them to choose from, including the first Carnival Run during Covid and the first international trip to Lisbon. But the ones that stick, she says, are the smaller ones. ‘When one of our members who started in a Couch to 5K programme completes their first marathon or ultra marathon, or when someone who was previously isolated and lacking community connection shows up every week to our Friday walk and talks because of the beautiful community and the ability to see the different lovely green spaces in Croydon. Or just those quiet moments when our members share how much being in the group means to them, because for the first time they are seen, held, and supported.’

ERC is a movement and wellness collective ‘rooted in community, culture, and care.’ It creates spaces for historically excluded groups to run, move, and thrive. ‘Our members are from the black and brown community,’ explains Denise. ‘Unfortunately, we live in a society where many of the structures and systems in place were not built with black and brown people in mind. So a lot of places feel unwelcome and as though we do not belong. Sport and movement spaces are no different.’ What her community wants, she says, is the same as anyone else's: to move freely and safely, to laugh, to have fun, to belong in a way that fully embraces them and their culture.

What Denise is most looking forward to this year is finding out whether ERC can win at the England Athletics London Regional Volunteer Awards again. Last year they took home Community Project of the Year - ‘certainly one of the biggest highlights’ - and this year they've been nominated in the Unsung Project category for their Hurricane Melissa Fundraising Run, organised within a week to support communities in Jamaica after the 2025 hurricane, and raising £10,000 in that time. One of their members has also been nominated in the Unsung Hero category.

Learn more about Emancipated Run Crew.