JP Balki Event

About the race

The JP Balki Event is a charity run in Heeze, held in memory of Jean-Paul Balkestein, who died of cardiac arrest while jogging at the age of thirty-two. That explains where the money goes: to research into heart defects in children and to experimental medical research. The running starts from the Boschlaan in the town centre, crosses the grounds of Heeze Castle and passes mainly through the surrounding nature reserves. The programme opens with a 3-kilometre family run, after which the half marathon sets off, followed by the 7, 10.6 and 14.3 kilometres. Late in the afternoon come the prize-giving and the handing over of the cheques, and the evening continues on the castle grounds.