After many years of planning and fundraising, Chichester now has a running track.
The Phil Baker Track at Chichester College is a 300m training track with an all-weather polymeric surface, marked out for three 900mm wide lanes. Two of the corners are banked like a standard 200m indoor track. The other corner is the same as a standard 400m track. There is a separate 60m 3 x 1.2m sprint straight and a small all-weather warm up area.
At the time of writing (Mar 2026) the tarmac base of the track is complete and Chichester Runners is starting to use the facility for limited training sessions. The final technical surface will be added in spring, once weather improves.
Initial reports from runners are very positive, even without the final surface. Running on a track is a very different experience to running in the park or on the city streets. The smooth, continuous surface lets athletes focus entirely on their running and their performance, without having to worry about tripping on something, dodging traffic or bumping into passers-by. There are no excuses for slowing down anymore! And that accelerates improvements.
FAQs
Can my Club/Group use it?
Absolutely. Chichester Runners has first refusal on the Phil Baker Track outside College hours, but when the club isn’t it the track will available for booking through the Chichester College Sports Centre, at a commercial rate.
Bookings will open once the track is fully complete and access control is up-and-running – sometime in early summer 2026.
Why not 400m?
Putting a full 400m track with 8 lanes in the middle of Chichester isn’t a practical proposition – it would take too much land and money. And it isn’t really necessary. Most of the benefits can be delivered on a smaller scale.
In some ways, a 300m track is more usable for training than a 400m track. An athlete setting off on a 400m lap is out of range of their coach for a very long time.
Why the unusual shape?
The unique shape of the track is a response to the parameters of the site at Chichester College, but it doesn’t have much impact on the experience of running laps. The banked corners allow runners to go round quite tight bends at high speed, without breaking step.
The track will be homologated (officially measured), so you can still break records on it. They will be classed as a Short Track records, the same as on a 200m indoor track.
Why Chichester College?
Chichester Runners and Chichester College have had a partnership for many years.
For the club, working with a partner that already has the land, plenty of parking, changing rooms and a sports pavilion was the only way to keep the cost of building the track to an achievable level.
For the city of Chichester, adding a track to the facilities at Chichester College and the nearby Westgate centre helps to build an ever stronger hub for sports in that area.
Who is Phil Baker?
Phil was one of the founders of Chichester Runners and has been a mainstay of the club for over 40 years – coaching runners, organising events, managing teams and much more. For many, Phil Baker and Chichester Runners are synonymous.
Many people have contributed to the project to build a track, but there was only one obvious candidate when we were looking for a name. Thank you Phil for your contribution over many years.
Where did the money come from?
As well as the cash contributions from various sources, the club owes a debt of gratitutde to Glanvilles and to Archibald Shaw for their generous support through the project.
