This Was the Wings for Life World Run 2024 in Breda

More than 3,000 participants lined up at the start of the Wings for Life World Run in Breda on May 5. This was the 11th edition of this unique global run, which took place in Breda for the third time. A record 265,818 participants from 192 nationalities started simultaneously in 169 countries. One hundred percent of the entry fees go toward research into cures for spinal cord injuries. The winner in Breda was Valentin Poncelet. At 66.6 km, the Belgian was the last to be overtaken by Robert Doornbos and Kjeld Nuis in the Catcher Car, the moving finish line.

Among the participants in Breda was sports director Erben Wennemars. Wennemars recorded 45.4 kilometers this time. On behalf of all participants, Wennemars is extremely proud of the €8.1 million raised worldwide.

‘We all walk for those who can no longer do so,’ begins Wennemars. ‘Everyone makes it to the finish line. We all put in a fantastic sporting performance, whether it’s 5 kilometers, 10, or Valentin Poncelet’s 66.6 kilometers.’

With that distance, Poncelet is third in the world. The furthest distance was run in Japan by Tomoya Watanabe, who also set the new Wings for Life World Run world record with 70.1 kilometers as the 2024 global winner.

Just before the start, Wennemars enthuses all the participants: ‘In addition to that fantastic achievement you’ve put yourself through, you also have to realize how privileged we are to be able to run and have a body that functions well. That is why we are running here in Breda – because we have the ambition to solve that with this run, now and in the future.’

Everyone Finishes
The so-called Catcher Car typifies the Wings for Life World Run – a moving finish line that catches up with all participants. As a result, everyone walks, runs, or rolls the distance that suits them. Thirty minutes after the runners left Breda, former Formula 1 driver Robert Doornbos set off in pursuit as the driver of the Catcher Car. With Olympic champion Kjeld Nuis as his co-driver, Doornbos went a little bit faster each time, and together they formed the moving finish line that eventually overtakes everyone. Among them were Olympian Anne Veenendaal, Moto3 talent Collin Veijer, speed skater Joep Wennemars, and local ambassador Sandra Laros. After more than four hours, everyone was caught up.

About the Wings for Life World Run
The Wings for Life World Run is the largest running event in the world, where all participants start at the same time. Everyone can participate. In fact, there is no finish line. Thirty minutes after the start of the race, the so-called Catcher Car begins driving. It catches up with all participants; the moment you are overtaken, you have finished. The best part of the run is that 100% of the entry fees and all donations go toward research to cure spinal cord injuries.

This is the 11th edition of the Wings for Life World Run, which is taking place in Breda for the third time, following previous editions in 2016 and 2017. In all those years, with 1.5 million participants, the run has raised a total of more than 51.93 million euros for research to cure spinal cord injuries.