Read All About The History Behind Our Other Race Events...

What is the “StrongPoint 1500m”? Juno Beach (Normandy, France) was well fortified in 1944. Mines, barbed wire, and beach obstacles to Allied tanks and landing craft littered the sands. German machine guns, mortars, and artillery, often positioned in concrete bunkers, overlooked the likely Allied landing areas. Strongpoints in the German-held towns of Courseulles-sur-Mer, Bernières-sur-Mer, and Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer dominated the beaches.

Courseulles was the most heavily defended area attacked by British and Canadian forces on D-Day. The strongpoints at Courseulles and nearby Graye-sur-Mer contained a dozen concrete machine-gun posts covering a total of six artillery pieces overlooking the beach. Today, the Juno Beach Centre stands on the same ground as Stützpunkt (Strongpoint) 31, located on Mike Red Sector of Juno Beach.

This shorter distance event (1500m) is for ideal children, older participants, and anyone else who does not want to run or walk the 8k or 21k distances. It is named for the strongpoint and 1500 metre stretch of beach overcome by the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, the 1st Hussars (6th Canadian Armoured Regiment), and the 6th Field Company, Royal Canadian Engineers on D-Day.

What is the significance of the “Juno Beach 8K”?  D-Day, June 6th 1944, was among the greatest moments of the 20th century. The landings started the battle to liberate France from Nazi Germany. The Canadians stormed an 8-kilometre stretch of sand featuring coastal villages fortified into German strongholds. Code-named JUNO, some 14,000 Canadian soldiers with hometowns from coast to coast landed here. A further 7,000 British troops joined them. When you run this fall, you are running in remembrance of every Canadian or Allied soldier who landed at Juno Beach.

Why Is It Named The Remembrance 21.1K?  The total number of troops landed on Juno Beach on D-Day was approximately 21,000. We offer a half-marathon (which is 21.1 kilometres long), in honour of those troops.

The Remembrance Day Races Virtual Running & Walking Events benefit Juno Beach Centre (junobeach.org).

Register now for one of four historically significant virtual race distances or our newly added, live, in-person event and receive a race kit that includes a beautiful, oversized, stand-up finisher medal (like the one pictured at left) with a removable ribbon and depicting one of Canada’s Volunteer Soldiers, along with a Remembrance Day “Lest We Forget” Flag, a keepsake D-Day race bib, a Remembrance Day Poppy, a Commemorative Pin with the image of a classic WWII Lancaster Bomber and more! Run or walk your event distance of choice anytime between September 1 and December 31, 2021. Donations will go to support the Juno Beach Centre honouring those brave Canadians and the sacrifices they made. (Click the button below to register.)

Now, in addition to our three original Virtual Running or Walking Events to Benefit Juno Beach Centre, we are offering the New ‘FRANCE 5km’!

Sponsor a Canadian Flag at the Juno Beach Centre

Visitors are filled with pride when they see the Canadian flag flapping in the breeze above the sands of Juno Beach. Help us ensure that there is always a pristine Maple Leaf flying at the Juno Beach Centre.

Support the Juno Beach Centre by sponsoring a Canadian flag. The Centre flies the Canadian flag or Maple Leaf every day, even on days with inclement weather. To keep these flags in acceptable conditions, they are replaced regularly at a cost to the museum. The importance of the symbolism these flags represent is paramount both to our staff and our visitors.

The minimum donation for each flag (measuring 100 x 150 cm), including shipping to an address of your choice and a certificate of authenticity, is $500.

Please click here for more information or to donate and own a piece of history.

Several of these flags will also be given to Remembrance Day Race event participants through draws. You must register for one of the events to be eligible to win.

There Is Significant History Behind All Our Events...

Why the “FRANCE 5km”? Canadian soldiers have fought and died in the fields, hills, and beaches of northern France through two world wars. In the dark days of the Second World War the nearly 5,000 men from the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division suffered through the tragic Dieppe Raid of August 19, 1942. Two-thirds of these were killed, wounded, or captured.

Two years later, in early September 1944, the 2nd Division liberated the port town of Dieppe after fighting through the Battle of Normandy. This battle cost the Canadian Army over 5,000 soldiers killed, a devastating toll over 77 days of fighting to destroy the German army in France and liberate that country.

When you run or walk the France 5km this fall, you remember our troops at Dieppe and the fallen Canadians who rest forever in Normandy.

The ‘FRANCE 5km’ is a newly added virtual run or walk event

Click on the medal image at left or the pin image at right to see enlarged images of the 2021 Remembrance Day Races finisher medal and commemorative pin.

The ‘FRANCE 5km’ is a newly added virtual run or walk event