Statistics show that most people now taking up running in France are women. In Paris, some run alone and some in running groups – which are booming in the French capital as women turn to them for motivation, safety and a sense of community.
"There are around 13 million people in France who run, both men and women. And 63 percent of new runners – those who have been running for less than two years – are women," sports policy consultant Claire Rabès told RFI. She was citing the latest figures from the UESC, the professional organisation for the sports and cycling industry in France, which also found that the proportion of women taking part in running events has risen from 28 percent to 37 percent over the past 10 years. This year’s Paris Marathon on 12 April attracted nearly 60,000 participants, 33 percent of whom were women – compared to 31 percent in 2025 and 25 percent in 2022. Running is one of the most accessible forms of exercise, Rabès explains. "Running is easy: you can do it in trainers and, basically, whenever and wherever you like. And we know full well that women face difficulties when it comes to doing sport, particularly in terms of mental load and available time." Lockdown escape Jeanne, who works for a bank, started running in 2020 during the Covid pandemic. At the time, she was working from home in a flat shared with six people, three of whom she didn’t get on with. "I needed to let off steam, and little by little it started to do me good," she told RFI on the sidelines of a recent 10 km charity run in the Bois de Boulogne on the western edge of Paris. "At first, I was running three kilometres, and the day I managed to run 10 kilometres without stopping, well... I was so happy." Rabès says Covid lockdowns pushed lots of people towards running. "During the pandemic, people realised that running was the only way to get outside."
