Explainers and lists · Sri Lanka
Seven founders building Sri Lanka's running culture
Running in Sri Lanka used to mean race day. Now it means Thursday nights in Colombo, Sunday coffee at Galle Fort, free runs in Jaffna and marathon training for people who have never raced. These are the clubs and the people who started them.
In short
Seven running communities are driving Sri Lanka's running culture: Project 42 (Eesaa Ibrahim), Lightning (Neesh), Run For Coffee (five friends in Galle Fort), Endurance Lab (Denis Crassier and Mithun Liyanage), Jaffna Runners (Shan Sundaram), Colombo City Running (founded 2015, 500+ runners) and Colombo Night Run (Tharindu Wickramasekera, founded 2016, runners from more than 40 countries every Thursday).
Project 42
Eesaa Ibrahim is a strength and conditioning coach. He founded Project 42 to take the high-performance coaching he does for athletes and apply it to ordinary runners with one goal: finishing a full marathon, the 42 in the name.
Lightning
Neesh came back from London having run with communities there and found nothing like them at home. Lightning is the club he built to combine running, friendship and the energy of the overseas groups that first got him running.
Run For Coffee
Five friends, Channuka, Ambre, Jo, Sophie and Duli, started with relaxed runs, guitars and coffee at Galle Fort on Sundays. It now draws 50 to 70 people a week.
Endurance Lab
Denis Crassier and Mithun Liyanage built Endurance Lab to make endurance coaching accessible. It trains beginners towards a first 5K and experienced athletes towards Ironman.
Jaffna Runners
Shan Sundaram started running at 69. He went on to complete all six World Marathon Majors, then founded Jaffna Runners as an inclusive community where every event is free.
Colombo City Running
Founded in 2015 by a group of friends, CCR is one of Colombo's pioneer running communities. It now connects more than 500 runners through free training, beginner programmes and community events.
Colombo Night Run
A running community in Kuala Lumpur inspired Tharindu Wickramasekera to start one in Colombo. Founded in 2016, Colombo Night Run brings together runners from more than 40 countries every Thursday evening.
The clubs in numbers
Questions people ask
Which run clubs are there in Colombo?
Colombo City Running, Colombo Night Run, Project 42, Lightning and Endurance Lab.
Is there a free run club in Sri Lanka?
Jaffna Runners keeps every event free. Colombo City Running offers free training and beginner programmes.
Where does Run For Coffee meet?
Galle Fort, on Sundays.
When is Colombo Night Run?
Every Thursday evening.