Tough Mudder banned from London park after damage left it ‘looking like the Somme’

A council has banned Tough Mudder challenges from a north London park after the damage left behind by recent competitors was compared to the Somme after the First World War battle.

Finsbury Park was reduced to a mire over the weekend after those taking on the obstacle course churned the ground into a mud bath and disturbed nesting birds.

The damage done by the hundreds of people who took part in the race was described as an “environmental disgrace” by Labour MP David Lammy, who said he was “utterly appalled” after visiting the park on Sunday.

“I have nothing against @Toughmudder but Finsbury Park is an inner city urban park and the damage done is an environmental disgrace,” he wrote on Twitter.

Charitable trust The Friends of Finsbury Park said it was “devastated” by the destruction, while social media users compared the churned grassland to “the Somme”.

Other Finsbury Park residents took to Twitter to share their disdain, describing the damage as “a disaster” and “extremely depressing”.

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn also hit out at the destruction, saying “green spaces should be preserved for public use, not vandalised for commercial gain.”

Following the complaints, a statement was released by Haringey Council saying the event would “not be held in Finsbury Park going forward”.

Haringey Council deputy leader Mike Hakata, said: “I visited Finsbury Park on Saturday night and was upset to see the scale of damage that has been caused to grass areas across the site.

“We have seen considerable rainfall over recent weeks which has saturated the ground and will need repair. This will be rectified as soon as possible, and any cost will be covered by the event organisers.

“Tough Mudder events have taken place successfully for four years now, enabling thousands of people young and old to enjoy the outdoors and improve their health and wellbeing, at the same time as raising significant funds for charitable causes.

“The impact of the event this year has caused several weeks’ worth of damage to the park and as a result we have had to rethink our approach. To prevent the risk of this repeating, we have decided that this event will not be held in Finsbury Park going forward.

“We are proud of our green spaces in Haringey and are working together with residents to make sure that our many wonderful parks remain vibrant and welcoming spaces for everyone to enjoy.”

Tough Mudder hosted several events over the weekend, including 5km and 10km routes featuring a number of obstacles.

The organisers have been contacted for comment.