"A Mourning Run? That's Disturbing": Posting Running Records to Honor Deceased Runner... Some Call It "A Runner's Way"

Disrespectful to the bereaved family or not malicious? Debate over “mourning runs”
Participant in her 20s dies at half-marathon event

Controversy has arisen after some runners began posting screenshots of their running records on social media, calling it a “mourning run” to honor a deceased participant in her 20s who died after taking part in a marathon in central Seoul.

On October 16, Runner A posted a screenshot of their workout record on social media, writing, “I ran from where I am early this morning in memory of Yoo Jiwon.” A added, “With the feelings of both a runner and a parent in mind, I offer my deepest condolences,” and, “Yoo Jiwon, we’ll run the remaining 500 meters for you.”

The late Yoo Jiwon, a KAIST graduate student and former running influencer who participated in the half marathon at the 2026 Seoul Race. Screenshot from Instagram.

After the post spread online, people debated whether the tribute was sincere. Many criticized the act of displaying one’s own workout record and running distance in the name of honoring the deceased as inappropriate.

Some online users criticized the post, saying, “If you truly want to mourn, you can do so quietly on your own. I don’t understand why you would post your records on social media to show off a ‘mourning run.’” Others said, “It’s disturbing that people who didn’t even know her are posting her name and photos without her family’s consent, as if promoting themselves,” “This could be another form of secondary harm to her family,” and, “Didn’t you see her parents crying and pleading for people to please stop?”

However, others said the practice should be viewed as part of the distinctive culture of fitness communities. Overseas CrossFit and running groups, for example, have ways of commemorating members who have died by converting their birthdays or dates of death into numbers and holding workout sessions in their memory.

Part of a social media post published by Runner A in tribute to the late Yoo Jiwon. Screenshot from A's social media account.

In 2022, running communities across the United States held memorial runs to honor Eliza Fletcher, who was killed while running, by continuing her run and completing it. The Wythenshawe Community Run in Manchester, England, also held a memorial run in honor of fellow runner Mike Dunn, who died in 2023, and later organized a commemorative 10-kilometer race. One online user said, “It’s just an attempt to share grief in a way unique to runners, and it’s hard to see it as malicious.”

On October 11, Yoo Jiwon, a graduate student at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) who had been active as a running influencer, collapsed about 500 meters from the finish line of the half marathon at the “2026 Seoul Race” in Seoul and later died. The cause of death has not yet been confirmed.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.