Great north fail as runners spot medal blunder

GREAT North Run organisers have apologised after the wrong river and wrong city were pictured on medals and shirts.

- OWEN YOUNGER Reporter

Many Great North Run participants were left puzzled after spotting a glaring mistake on their medals.

The event on Sunday saw 60,000 runners complete the 13.1-mile course from Newcastle to South Shields, with each of them taking home a medal.

On one side of each medal is a map which is labelled with Newcastle, Gateshead and South Shields.

However, many runners are furious after spotting that the map is actually of Sunderland with the River Wear running through it.

The mix-up had gone unnoticed by Great North Run organisers, with the map also featuring on other merchandise, including T-shirts. The Great North Run Company has now issued an apology for the mistake.