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Terms of Use

Last updated: April 2026

These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the PaceMates platform, including our website, web and mobile applications, and related services (collectively, "PaceMates", "we", "us", or "our"). By creating an account or using PaceMates in any way, you agree to be bound by these Terms.

If you do not agree to these Terms, you must not use PaceMates.

1. Who we are

PaceMates is a platform that helps runners discover runs, parkruns, clubs, groups, events, routes, training plans, race entries, and related services, and to connect with other runners and organisers.

PaceMates may also provide software and services for race organisers, including event listings, ticket and entry sales, participant registration, official ticket transfers or swaps, digital ticket issuance and reissuance, admissions and scanning tools, participant communications, and related payment support.

Unless explicitly stated otherwise, races, runs, clubs, groups, and events listed or sold through PaceMates are organised, operated, and controlled by independent third parties or users, not by PaceMates. PaceMates provides the platform and related tools but is not the organiser, promoter, or operator of those events unless expressly identified as such.

2. Eligibility

You may use PaceMates only if:

  • You are at least 18 years old (or the age of legal majority in your jurisdiction), and
  • You have the power to enter into a binding contract with us, and
  • You are not prohibited from using PaceMates under applicable law.

By using PaceMates, you represent and warrant that you meet these requirements.

3. Accounts and security

3.1 Account registration

To access many features, you must create an account and provide accurate, current, and complete information. You agree to keep your account information up to date.

3.2 Account security

You are responsible for:

  • Maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials; and
  • All activities that occur under your account.

You must notify us immediately if you believe your account has been compromised. We are not liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to protect your account.

4. Health, fitness, and safety

4.1 No medical advice

PaceMates does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Training plans, routes, and community content are for general informational purposes only and are not a substitute for professional medical advice.

Always consult a doctor or qualified health professional before starting or significantly changing an exercise programme, especially if you have any medical conditions or concerns.

4.2 Your responsibility and assumption of risk

Running and related physical activities involve inherent risks, including serious injury and death. You understand and agree that:

  • You participate in any run, event, training, or activity you discover through PaceMates entirely at your own risk.
  • You are solely responsible for assessing whether a route, pace, distance, or activity is suitable for you, considering your health, fitness, experience, and conditions such as traffic, terrain, weather, and daylight.
  • You are responsible for complying with all applicable laws, traffic rules, and park regulations.

By using PaceMates and participating in any activity connected with it, you knowingly and voluntarily assume all risks associated with such activities.

5. Third‑party races, organisers, clubs, groups, and events

Many runs, races, parkruns, clubs, groups, events, perks, and ticketed activities listed or made available on PaceMates are created, organised, promoted, or operated by third parties, not by us.

We do not control and are not responsible for:

  • the existence, quality, safety, legality, accessibility, punctuality, or suitability of any race, run, event, training session, club, group, parkrun, or related activity;
  • the accuracy, completeness, or currency of event descriptions, pricing, capacities, deadlines, participant requirements, race rules, or organiser communications;
  • the behaviour, actions, omissions, or misconduct of any organiser, participant, club, volunteer, vendor, sponsor, or third party;
  • whether any participant is permitted to transfer, defer, swap, sell, or otherwise change an entry under the organiser's rules.

parkrun events and Athletics Ireland clubs are shown as community listings only. Official parkrun and Athletics Ireland channels remain the authoritative source of information. Our listings may be incomplete, outdated, or incorrect and should always be verified against official sources before you travel.

Where a race organiser uses PaceMates to sell entries or manage participants, the organiser remains solely responsible for the event itself, including compliance with applicable law, event delivery, participant safety information, and any organiser-specific event terms, policies, or waivers.

6. Important disclaimer of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law:

PaceMates provides the platform and all content and services "as is" and "as available", without any warranties of any kind, whether express, implied, statutory, or otherwise.

We do not warrant that PaceMates will be uninterrupted, error‑free, secure, or free of harmful components, or that any defects will be corrected.

6.1 No responsibility for injuries, death, or losses

You agree that PaceMates, its founders, employees, contractors, and affiliates shall not be liable for any:

  • Injury, illness, or health condition;
  • Death;
  • Property damage;
  • Financial loss, economic loss, or loss of profit;
  • Loss of data; or
  • Any other direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages,

arising out of or in connection with:

  • Your use of, or inability to use, PaceMates;
  • Any run, parkrun, event, club, group, meeting, training session, route, or activity you join, attend, or participate in as a result of PaceMates;
  • Any acts or omissions of other users, organisers, clubs, or third parties;
  • Any content or information (including maps, schedules, or training guidance) that may be inaccurate, incomplete, or out of date.

This applies whether the claim is based on warranty, contract, tort (including negligence), strict liability, or any other legal theory, and even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damage.

If the law in your jurisdiction does not allow the exclusion of certain liabilities, our liability shall be limited to the maximum extent permitted by law.

7. User conduct

You agree that you will not:

  • Use PaceMates for any illegal purpose or in violation of any law or regulation.
  • Harass, threaten, abuse, or harm another person, or encourage others to do so.
  • Discriminate against or engage in hate speech towards any individual or group.
  • Post or transmit any content that is illegal, defamatory, obscene, or otherwise objectionable.
  • Impersonate any person or entity, or misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity.
  • Attempt to gain unauthorized access to PaceMates, other accounts, or our systems.
  • Interfere with or disrupt the operation of PaceMates or its infrastructure.

We may monitor and review content and behaviour on the platform. We may remove content, restrict features, or suspend or terminate accounts at our discretion if we believe these Terms or our safety guidelines have been violated.

8. Content and intellectual property

8.1 Your content

You may upload or create content on PaceMates (for example, profile information, messages, run descriptions, photos, routes, or comments). By doing so, you:

  • Warrant that you own the necessary rights to the content and that it does not infringe any third‑party rights or laws.
  • Grant PaceMates a worldwide, non‑exclusive, royalty‑free, sublicensable licence to use, host, store, reproduce, modify, and display your content for the purpose of operating, improving, and promoting the platform.

You remain responsible for your content at all times.

8.2 Our content

All intellectual property rights in PaceMates (including logos, branding, software, design, and content that we create) are owned by us or our licensors. You may not copy, modify, distribute, sell, or lease any part of PaceMates except as expressly allowed by these Terms or with our prior written consent.

9. Payments, ticketing, organisers, and advertising

9.1 General

Certain features of PaceMates involve payments, including race entries, organiser services, advertiser credits, partner services, official transfer or swap fees, and future premium features.

When you make a payment through PaceMates, you agree to provide accurate payment information and authorise us and/or our third-party payment processors to charge the applicable amount, including any taxes, fees, and charges disclosed at checkout.

Third-party payment processors, such as Stripe, may process payment information under their own terms and privacy policies. PaceMates does not store full payment card details unless expressly stated.

9.2 Race entries and ticketing services

PaceMates may facilitate the listing, marketing, sale, issuance, management, transfer, reissuance, scanning, and cancellation of race entries or tickets on behalf of organisers.

Unless expressly stated otherwise, the purchase of a race entry or ticket creates a contract between the purchaser and the relevant organiser, subject to:

  • these Terms;
  • any event-specific terms, conditions, policies, waivers, or eligibility rules shown by the organiser; and
  • any checkout disclosures presented by PaceMates.

The organiser, not PaceMates, is solely responsible for the event, the delivery of the event experience, the content of the event, the accuracy of event information, and compliance with applicable laws, permits, licences, insurance requirements, accessibility obligations, and consumer obligations.

9.3 Ticket validity and issuance

A ticket or race entry is valid only for the event, date, category, and participant stated on the active record in the PaceMates system.

PaceMates and/or the organiser may issue, revoke, suspend, invalidate, replace, or reissue tickets or race entries where reasonably necessary for:

  • fraud prevention or security;
  • correction of participant data;
  • event changes or cancellations;
  • payment failure, reversal, chargeback, or suspected unauthorised use;
  • duplicate, altered, counterfeit, transferred, or invalid tickets;
  • organiser-approved changes;
  • official transfer or swap workflows; or
  • legal, operational, or safety reasons.

Where a ticket is reissued, any earlier ticket, QR code, barcode, or digital pass relating to that entry may become void immediately and may no longer be used for admission.

9.4 Ticket purchaser and participant information

The purchaser is responsible for providing accurate and complete information for themselves and, where permitted, for any participant or attendee associated with a booking.

You acknowledge that organisers may require participant-specific information, including name, date of birth, contact details, club details, emergency contact details, wave or category information, waiver acceptance, or other information reasonably required for event administration.

We may share participant and booking information with the relevant organiser and service providers as necessary to operate the event, issue tickets, validate eligibility, communicate essential event updates, provide support, and comply with legal obligations, all in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

9.5 Official transfers and ticket swaps

Some organisers may permit official ticket transfers, participant changes, or ticket swaps through PaceMates. Such features are available only where expressly enabled by the organiser and supported by PaceMates.

Informal user race entry listings (the community noticeboard where members coordinate entries between themselves) are governed by section 9D and are not official transfers or swaps under this section.

Where an official transfer or swap is completed through PaceMates:

  • PaceMates may collect any disclosed transfer or swap fee;
  • the original participant's ticket may be invalidated;
  • a new ticket or updated active entry may be issued to the replacement participant; and
  • only the currently active ticket or entry recorded in the PaceMates system will be valid for admission.

Unless expressly stated otherwise, unofficial transfers, off-platform sales, private arrangements, screenshots, copied QR codes, or handovers not completed through an official PaceMates-supported workflow are not verified by PaceMates and are used entirely at your own risk.

PaceMates may refuse, reverse, cancel, or restrict any transfer or swap request where required by organiser policy, payment status, fraud controls, ticket type restrictions, cut-off times, legal obligations, or operational constraints.

Any transfer or swap fees are non-refundable unless:

  • the transfer or swap is not completed due to a technical error caused by PaceMates;
  • the organiser or PaceMates cancels the transfer or swap before completion; or
  • a refund is required by law or expressly approved by PaceMates or the organiser.

9.6 Refunds, cancellations, postponements, and changes

Refund eligibility for race entries and tickets may depend on the organiser's event-specific terms, the stage of the event, the type of ticket purchased, and applicable law.

Unless otherwise required by law, disclosed at checkout, or expressly stated in organiser-specific terms:

  • tickets and race entries may be non-refundable;
  • bookings may be non-transferable except through an official supported workflow; and
  • booking fees, payment processing fees, and transfer or swap fees may be non-refundable.

If an event is cancelled, postponed, rescheduled, materially changed, capacity-restricted, or abandoned, refunds, credits, deferrals, exchanges, or alternative arrangements may be offered by the organiser in accordance with the organiser's policy and applicable law.

Where PaceMates processes refunds on an organiser's behalf, PaceMates acts only as a payment and technology facilitator unless expressly stated otherwise. PaceMates may issue full or partial refunds, credits, or reversals where required by law, by our payment processor, by a court or regulator, by organiser instruction, or to protect users and the platform from fraud or abuse.

Nothing in these Terms affects any statutory rights that cannot legally be excluded or limited.

9.7 Organiser payouts, reserves, offsets, and disputes

Where PaceMates collects payment for organisers, PaceMates may hold, delay, split, condition, or withhold payouts for operational, fraud-prevention, compliance, security, reserve, dispute, refund, or chargeback reasons.

PaceMates may set off or deduct from organiser payouts, or otherwise recover from organisers, any amounts relating to:

  • refunds, partial refunds, credits, or reversals;
  • chargebacks, retrieval requests, or payment disputes;
  • fines, penalties, or fees imposed by payment processors or financial institutions;
  • fraud, suspected fraud, abuse, or unauthorised transactions;
  • taxes, duties, or mandatory governmental charges;
  • amounts owed by the organiser to PaceMates under these Terms or any other agreement.

If deductions cannot be recovered from existing organiser balances, the organiser remains liable to pay those amounts to PaceMates on demand.

9.8 Advertising, partners, and third parties

Partners, advertisers, perks, and sponsors listed on PaceMates are third parties. We are not responsible for their offers, services, products, promotions, or conduct.

Any dealings between you and a partner, organiser, advertiser, or sponsor are solely between you and that third party, except to the extent PaceMates is expressly identified as the contracting party.

9A. Organiser responsibilities

If you use PaceMates as a race organiser, promoter, event operator, club, or authorised event representative, you represent, warrant, and agree that:

  • you have full authority to create listings, sell entries, collect registrations, and bind the organising entity to these Terms;
  • all event, pricing, ticketing, and participant information you provide is accurate, lawful, complete, and not misleading;
  • you are solely responsible for the organisation, delivery, safety management, permissions, licences, insurance, staffing, volunteers, venue arrangements, route safety, participant eligibility rules, medical or emergency planning, and operation of your event;
  • you will honour the event-specific terms, refund rules, deferral rules, transfer rules, cut-off times, and participant commitments you publish or approve;
  • you will comply with all applicable laws, including consumer law, advertising law, equality law, data protection law, and any sport-governing or local authority requirements;
  • you will not use PaceMates to sell or promote any unlawful, misleading, fraudulent, discriminatory, unsafe, or unauthorised event or ticket;
  • you will only enable official ticket transfer or swap functionality where such functionality is legally and operationally appropriate for your event;
  • you will respond promptly and reasonably to participant support queries, event changes, complaints, disputes, and refund obligations relating to your event;
  • you will only access or use participant data for lawful event administration purposes and in accordance with applicable data protection law.

PaceMates may require proof of identity, entity status, authority, insurance, permits, banking details, tax details, or other verification from organisers at any time.

PaceMates may approve, reject, suspend, remove, de-list, or restrict any organiser account, event listing, payout, or ticketing functionality at its discretion where it reasonably believes there is fraud, legal risk, safety risk, reputational risk, excessive disputes, misleading content, non-compliance, or breach of these Terms.

9B. Admission, scanning, and event operations

Admission to a race or event may be subject to presentation of a valid active ticket, QR code, barcode, confirmation email, photo identification, proof of age, proof of eligibility, signed waiver, or any other reasonable requirement imposed by the organiser.

An organiser or authorised admissions staff may refuse entry, cancel admission, or remove a participant where:

  • the ticket is void, duplicated, altered, counterfeit, already used, refunded, cancelled, charged back, invalidated, or transferred outside an official supported workflow;
  • the participant does not meet event eligibility or identification requirements;
  • the participant breaches event rules, safety instructions, or venue requirements; or
  • admission is refused for safety, security, capacity, operational, or legal reasons.

PaceMates does not guarantee admission where the organiser is entitled to refuse entry under applicable event rules or law.

9C. Reporting, takedown, and appeals

If you believe that any event listing, organiser content, ticket listing, user content, message, or other material on PaceMates is illegal, fraudulent, misleading, infringing, unsafe, or otherwise in breach of these Terms, you may report it to us through the contact details or reporting tools we make available.

PaceMates may investigate reports and may remove, disable, restrict, suspend, de-rank, annotate, or otherwise act on content, listings, organisers, accounts, tickets, messages, or features where we reasonably believe such action is necessary to comply with law, protect users, prevent fraud, or enforce these Terms.

Where appropriate, PaceMates may notify the affected user or organiser of the action taken and may provide an opportunity to contest or appeal that decision, except where doing so would be unlawful, would compromise fraud or safety investigations, or would create security risk.

Repeat or serious violations may result in permanent suspension, event removal, payout holds, ticket invalidation, or account termination.

9D. User race entry listings (community noticeboard)

Separate from organiser ticketing and official swaps. PaceMates may offer user race entry listings: a community noticeboard where members can post that they wish to give, receive, or coordinate a race entry or place, and where interested members can open a direct message to discuss next steps. This feature is not the same as:

  • Official organiser ticketing or entry sales processed through PaceMates for an organiser (see sections 9.2–9.3); or
  • Official ticket transfers or swaps completed through an organiser-enabled, PaceMates-supported workflow (see section 9.5).

9D.1 Role of PaceMates

For user race entry listings, PaceMates acts only as a neutral facilitator of discovery and messaging. We are not the organiser, seller, buyer, broker, agent, or guarantor of any transfer, and we do not process or hold payments for the underlying entry between users in connection with a listing.

9D.2 Your responsibility

You are solely responsible for:

  • checking the official race organiser’s rules on transfers, deferrals, refunds, resale, bib changes, and eligibility;
  • ensuring that any arrangement you make is lawful and permitted by the organiser and the event;
  • any payment, agreement, or arrangement you make outside PaceMates with another user (including fraud, non-performance, or dispute between users);
  • the accuracy of what you post in a listing and any risk that a transfer may be refused, invalidated, or result in disqualification.

Unofficial transfers, private sales, or bib handovers that are not completed through an official PaceMates-supported organiser workflow are entirely at your own risk (see also section 9.5).

9D.3 No verification

PaceMates does not verify that a listing user holds a valid entry, that a transfer is allowed or will complete, that an organiser will approve a change, or that another user will act in good faith. Listings may be moderated or removed for safety, spam, or breach of these Terms without implying that remaining listings are verified or safe.

9D.4 Reporting and limits

You may report listings or behaviour that appear illegal, fraudulent, or in breach of these Terms. We may investigate and take action including removal of listings or suspension of accounts. That does not create an obligation to monitor all listings or messages.

10. Account suspension and termination

We may suspend or terminate your account, remove content, or restrict your access to some or all features if:

  • You violate these Terms, our safety guidelines, or applicable laws;
  • We reasonably suspect fraudulent, abusive, or harmful behaviour; or
  • We decide, in our sole discretion, to discontinue PaceMates or any part of it.

You may stop using PaceMates at any time and may request account deletion through the app or by contacting us. Some data may be retained as required for legal, security, or legitimate business purposes.

Without limiting the above, we may suspend or terminate organiser accounts, withhold payouts, remove event listings, disable ticketing or transfer/swap functionality, invalidate tickets, or restrict access to participant data where we reasonably suspect fraud, excessive disputes, legal non-compliance, safety concerns, misleading event information, unauthorised sales activity, or breach of these Terms.

Termination or suspension does not affect any accrued rights, payment obligations, chargeback liability, indemnities, investigatory rights, or rights to recover losses, fees, or damages.

11. Third‑party links and services

PaceMates may contain links to third‑party websites, apps, or services (including parkrun, Athletics Ireland, clubs, partners, and advertisers). These are not under our control, and we are not responsible for their content, policies, or practices. Accessing third‑party sites is at your own risk.

12. Data protection and privacy

Our collection and use of personal data is governed by our Privacy Policy, which forms part of these Terms. By using PaceMates, you agree that we may process your personal data in accordance with that policy and applicable data protection laws (including GDPR where applicable).

Where you purchase, hold, transfer, receive, or attend a ticketed event through PaceMates, you acknowledge that relevant personal data may be shared with the organiser and trusted service providers for ticket issuance, participant administration, event communications, admissions, support, safety, compliance, and fraud prevention, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable data protection law.

If you are an organiser, you agree that you act as an independent controller or processor, as applicable under law, for participant data you receive through PaceMates, and that you will process such data only for lawful event-related purposes and in compliance with applicable data protection law.

13. Changes to PaceMates and these Terms

We may modify PaceMates or these Terms from time to time, for example to reflect:

  • New features or services;
  • Changes in law or regulation; or
  • Security and operational needs.

When we make material changes, we will update the "Last updated" date and may provide additional notice in‑app or by email. If you continue to use PaceMates after the changes take effect, you are deemed to have accepted the updated Terms.

14. Governing law and disputes

These Terms and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them or PaceMates shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Ireland, without regard to conflict of laws principles.

Any disputes arising out of or relating to these Terms or PaceMates shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Ireland, unless applicable law requires otherwise.

15. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, and in addition to the specific disclaimers above:

Our total aggregate liability to you for all claims arising out of or relating to PaceMates or these Terms shall be limited to the greater of (a) the amount you have paid to us in the 12 months preceding the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) €50.

Some jurisdictions do not allow limitations of liability, so some of these limitations may not apply to you. In such cases, our liability will be limited to the maximum extent permitted by law.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits any liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited under applicable law.

16. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless PaceMates, its founders, employees, contractors, affiliates, payment providers, and service providers from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or in any way connected with:

  • your access to or use of PaceMates;
  • your content, listings, event materials, or communications;
  • your purchase, sale, transfer, swap, attendance at, organisation of, or participation in any run, race, event, club, group, or activity;
  • your breach of these Terms, organiser-specific terms, or applicable law;
  • your fraud, negligence, misconduct, misleading statements, or infringement of any third-party rights.

If you are an organiser, this indemnity includes claims relating to:

  • the organisation, cancellation, postponement, operation, or safety of your event;
  • personal injury, death, property damage, or economic loss arising from your event, except to the extent caused by PaceMates' own negligence or breach of law;
  • the accuracy, legality, or completeness of your event information, ticket content, pricing, policies, or participant communications;
  • refunds, chargebacks, disputes, complaints, investigations, fines, penalties, or regulatory actions connected with your event or sales activity.

17. Miscellaneous

  • Entire agreement – These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy and any additional policies referenced, constitute the entire agreement between you and us regarding PaceMates.
  • No waiver – Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms shall not be deemed a waiver of such right or provision.
  • Severability – If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect.
  • Assignment – You may not assign or transfer your rights or obligations under these Terms without our prior written consent. We may assign these Terms at any time in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, or by operation of law.
  • Conflict with organiser terms – If there is any conflict between these Terms and any event-specific organiser terms presented at checkout or on an event page, the organiser-specific terms will govern only to the extent of the conflict for that event, and only insofar as they do not reduce any non-excludable rights under applicable law or override PaceMates' platform rules, fraud controls, or payment protections.