Do you have to be a runner to research running? An insider-outsider debate

Running related research and work has been gaining much momentum over the last few years – this festival is a testament to that. This energy often seems to be driven by people who confess to be runners themselves and it rather begs the question as to whether being a runner is prerequisite for researching running. This 10-minute debate/discussion seeks to probe this question and draw out the benefits and negatives of being an insider or an outsider to the practice.
Delegates will be asked to draw on their own experiences to think about questions such as:
• Are you an insider or an outsider?
• How did you come to study running?
• What are the benefits and challenges of being an insider/outsider?
• What does being an insider/outsider conceal and reveal?
• How does researching running change your relationship to the practice and your insider/outsider status?
• Are running-researchers an exclusive community?
• How may the traits of running-research change as it gains popularity and reach in academia?