Tasha Thompson: Black Girls Do Run

Written by Josie Wise

Tasha Thompson is the founder of Black Girls Do Run, a run club dedicated to providing a space for black women to feel safe and confident enough to be active. 

Thompson said she hated cross country when she tried it in high school, but that didn’t stop her from becoming a passionate runner later in life. Twenty-five years ago Thompson went to the gym and found herself on the treadmill more than anything else. One day she moved to running outside, and she never stopped.  

Thompson often tells the story that made her realize something like Black Girls Do Run needed to exist in the UK. One race day, Thompson and a friend asked a race marshall about the route, and he asked if they were running in the race despite their obvious running gear and race numbers. This event opened her eyes to the headway necessary to normalize black women in sports. 

A 2023 study done by Sport England found 36% of black girls meet recommended daily activity levels as opposed to 48% of white girls. Thompson said part of this disparity comes from a lack of representation. She said when she was growing up, she didn’t see women who looked like her or women in her family fitting workouts into their daily routines. 

Thompson said she founded Black Girls Do Run because she wanted black girls to have that representation she didn’t have to inspire them to be active. 

“Everyday women who just fit in some kind of movement in their life, along with everything else that life throws at them inspire me,” Thompson said. “Elite athletes and celebrities are inspiring, but they’ve got the resources and the money to fit movement into their life a lot easier than everyday women.” 

She said seeing black athletes in the Olympics can seem unachievable for some girls, but seeing their mom or aunt working out would be a much more realistic avenue to inspire the next generation. 

“Representation matters, so you see someone that looks like you doing things and it makes you think you could do the same,” Thompson said. 

When black women and girls see a group of black women run past, having fun, smiling, and laughing, she hopes they start asking questions and getting involved. 

Running does not have to be scary or exclusive, she said. Part of the sport’s appeal is it can be done anywhere- one doesn’t need to travel to any venue to fit in movement, they could simply leave their house and be exercising one second later, she said.

Thompson recently branched out into triathlons and hopes to incorporate that into Black Girls Do Run. She already expanded the club across the UK with a team of run leaders doing their part to show the world that black girls do run.