See photos: 900 students and staff gathered for UniRun on campus

By Sofie Astrup, AAU Communication and Public Affairs. Translated by LeeAnn Iovanni.
Photo: Lasse Møller Badstue

Music and running shoes in every hue add colour to the grey September day as this year's UniRun kicked off.

"I think it's a great tradition that every year at the end of September, we meet here on the lawn as a bunch of hard-working, intellectual, fitness academics," says Pro-rector Anne Marie Kanstrup from the podium.

Because neither drizzle nor clouds can stop the 900 runners who take part in UniRun 2024 on Friday, 27 September, organized again by the Student Society.

UniFitness is also present and warms up the runners with high knee lifts and equally high spirits, while various associations provide competitions and prizes for the event.

Wearing AAU's anniversary jersey, Aalborg's mayor, Lasse Frimand Jensen, runs side by side with staff and students from Aalborg University (AAU).

"I also ran in the race myself when I was a student at AAU. I met a lot of new friends, and I hope that you can also run together as friends today," says the mayor before the race kicks off.

The 900 runners are sent out on 5 and 10 km distances in the campus area in Aalborg East. One of them is Peter Thorup Hansen, team leader at Campus Service. He has participated in UniRun every year since 2017, but this year he has a special goal during the route.

"I'm in the race for the social interaction with my colleagues, but I also wanted to beat[L1]  the mayor – and it went well. I started behind him, but got to the finish line first," he says with a smile on his face.

Not long after, his colleagues from Campus Service, Tina Højbjerg Hansen and Laila Irene Toft Christensen, also cross the finish line.

"We work at AAU where there’s a good sense of humour and high spirits among colleagues, so of course the rain will not stop us from participating in the race," says Tina Højbjerg Hansen.

For them, the jovial atmosphere on the route also means that UniRun is a tradition that is important to preserve.

It's a good way to spend time together. Everyone supports each other, and we cheer each other on, because we’re here together as AAU and as a whole," says Laila Irene Toft Christensen.

For colleagues Lars S. Anderson and Svend Erik Volsgaard from IT Services, taking part in the race with others from their department has also become a tradition.

"We sign up every year because of the high energy with the many young people and all of us running together across the university," says Lars S. Anderson.

But for the two colleagues, UniRun is more than an annual race.

"In a normal everyday life, it can be difficult to actually do the things we want to do with our colleagues after work, but when we sign up for UniRun, we’re sure to meet socially as well," adds Svend Erik Volsgaard.

See photos from the race here: