Private health company Bupa has ended its sponsorship of the Great Run series, which includes the Great North Run.
Bupa has supported the half-marathon Great North Run for the past 22 years, but has announced that September’s event was its last.
Bupa said that the decision was taken “following a review of our sponsorship and brand strategy."
Nova International, which organises the Great Run series, said that it is already in talks with a number of potential new sponsors and that the change will “have no effect” on its events.
The Great Run series takes place in 10 towns and cities in the UK, Ireland and Ethiopia. The Great North Run is held annually between Newcastle and South Shields.
More than two million people have taken part in the Great Run series of races, including more than one million in the Great North Run.