Thames Hare and Hounds is the oldest adult

cross-country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open coun ...

club in the world, based on the

Roehampton Roehampton is an area in southwest London, in the Putney SW15 postal district, and takes up a far western strip running north to south of the London Borough of Wandsworth. It contains a number of large council house estates and is home to the U ...

end of

Wimbledon Common Wimbledon Common is a large open space in Wimbledon, southwest London. There are three named areas: Wimbledon Common, Putney Heath, and Putney Lower Common, which together are managed under the name Wimbledon and Putney Commons totalling 460 ...

, adjacent to

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of Royal Parks of London, London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I of England, C ...

, and draws runners from across south-west

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Both the men's and women's teams compete in the Surrey Cross Country League, division one; the club also fields teams in road races and relays. Thames host races in Richmond Park and on Wimbledon Common, in particular the cross-country

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

–

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

Varsity Match A varsity match is a fixture (especially of a sporting event or team) between two university teams, particularly Oxford and Cambridge. The Scottish Varsity rugby match between the University of St Andrews and the University of Edinburgh at Murray ...

, held each year since 1880 on Wimbledon Common after the end of

Michaelmas term Michaelmas term is the first academic term of the academic year in a number of English-speaking universities and schools in the northern hemisphere, especially in the United Kingdom. Michaelmas term derives its name from the Feast of St Micha ...

History

The club was founded in 1868, by members of

Thames Rowing Club The Thames Rowing Club (TRC) is a rowing club based on the tidal Thames as it flows through the western suburbs of London. The TRC clubhouse stands on Putney Embankment. The club was founded in 1860. As at July 2022, Thames had won events at He ...

, particularly

Walter Rye Walter Rye (31 October 1843 – 24 February 1929) was a British athlete and antiquary, who wrote over 80 works on Norfolk. Early life Walter Rye was born on 31 October 1843 in Chelsea, London. He was the seventh child of Edward Rye, a solicitor ...

. Its name derives from the Victorian game of "Hare and Hounds" or " Paper Chase", in which one runner (the "hare") lays a trail of paper to be followed by the other runners (the "hounds"). The game had been established in schools for decades before the founding of Thames - the Royal

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into the ...

Hunt has written records going back to 1831.

References

External links

Thames Hare and Hounds
Sports clubs established in 1868 Running clubs in the United Kingdom 1868 establishments in England {{athletics-club-stub