Otago and Southland hosted one of Parkrun's international bosses, as he completed a whistle-stop tour to meet local organisers and communities of the popular weekend event last week (15 July).

Parkrun is a free social event where people can choose to either run, jog or walk a 5km course, or simply volunteer or watch.

Started over eighteen years ago in a UK park with 18 people, the event now attracts around 330,000 people weekly throughout 22 countries.

Forty three Parkruns involving nearly 5000 people are held each Saturday morning within New Zealand, including in Invercargill, Gore, Te Anau, Balclutha, Queenstown and Wanaka.

UK based Park Run Global's Chief Operating Officer Tom Williams, said he was in the south to find out how the event was working for local organisers and their communities.

Williams said he was ultimately responsible for setting the rules, including where events happen and what happens at them.

"I don't think you can set those rules and provide that guidance if you don't really understand the communities as best you can."

"Of course nobody understands the communities better than themselves, but by spending time with them, you can really learn a lot," Williams said.

Williams said he believed humans had a built-in need to be outdoors, active and social, but with the world becoming less active and more digital, those opportunities were becoming harder to find.

"I think [Parkrun's] success over the last nearly 19 years, has been around providing that opportunity, particularly for intergenerational activity."

Speaking after the Te Anau Parkrun, Williams said he had seen kids in single figure ages as well as people into their 70s and 80s.

"So it's not that you're watching your kids swimming or you're playing football and your family can't do it with you, this is actually where everybody can participate in their way."

"That's fairly rare in this world. And of course for free," Williams said.

Looking to the future Williams said he would like to see the number of weekly events in New Zealand double and participants triple, "which will make loads more people healthy and happy."

Williams said while the keen people would always seek out the events, the global charity was always looking at ways to involve those who were the least healthy, least happy, least active and most socially isolated.

He said Parkrun had now been adopted into some prisons and in the UK, Parkrun was also being prescribed by some general practitioners.

"Hopefully we'll look at things like that in New Zealand over the coming years, as well as just growing," Williams said.

CLICK HERE to find out more about Parkrun in New Zealand.