THE London Olympics are looming – but this week the drive is on to get more people to sign up for a major sporting event closer to home.

The second Shire Destination Basingstoke Half-Marathon will take place on Sunday, October 7.

Last year, the event took place for the first time in the town, with nearly 2,000 runners taking on the 13-mile route.

The challenging course will take participants from Basingstoke’s War Memorial Park, out across rolling countryside to Cliddesden, Ellisfield and Farleigh Wallop, and back to the park.

Organised by Destination Basingstoke, the 2011 event put Basingstoke on the running map.

Several corporate teams have already signed up to join the 2012 event, and this week a roadshow is going round in a bid to drum up more entries.

Headline sponsor Shire Pharmaceuticals, based in Chineham, will have more than 40 staff taking part.

Jessica Mann, vice-president for global communications at Shire, said: “Last year, |I watched the half-marathon with many of my colleagues from Shire, and saw the elation of all the runners as they crossed the finish line. This year I am determined to be part of it.”

Phillips Solicitors, which is sponsoring T-shirts, given out for free to all runners, has also registered a team of 50 runners. Last year, the Basingstoke company won the prizes for both Fastest Male Corporate team and the Fastest Mixed Corporate team.

Director Jonathan Pender said: “Last year’s half-marathon was a triumph for Basingstoke. So we can’t resist asking our staff and clients to run with us again, and we’ve invited some new runners to join our team. We’ll be training hard to support St Michael’s Hospice, and we’ve definitely got our eye on keeping the trophies.”

To register before the August 31 deadline, visit basingstokehalfmarathon.com.