The race director of an inaugural night of elite and mass participation street racing in Ipswich has called for more amateur runners and fundraisers to enter the event.

People of all abilities are urged to enter the Ipswich Twilight Road Races to compete in either a star-studded 5k road race or a mass participation 10k road race on Friday, August 14.

Participants will start in Rope Walk outside Suffolk New College, run past landmarks including Ipswich Town’s Portman Road stadium, Tower Ramparts and the Buttermarket shopping centres before finishing at the college.

The races, which are sponsored by the Ipswich Building Society, are aimed for anyone who enjoys running, from seasoned athletes looking to break a personal best to those new to running and hoping to complete their first ever 10k race.

More than 500 people have already signed up to compete in the 10k challenge but race director Carl Ashton, of the Ipswich JAFFA Running Club, one of the organisers, has called for more to come forward.

He said: “We would like to make a call to action for entries for the 10k race. It is open to everyone over the age of 15 and is designed as a mass participation event for all abilities of runners. It is going to be a fantastic event and we want as many people as possible to enter.

“We have had a pretty good response so far, but we are not quite where we want to be at this stage. We have around 560 runners signed up for the 10k. We have capacity for 2,000 and ideally want at least 700.

“The run could even be part of your training for the Larking Gowen Ipswich Half Marathon, which takes place on Sunday, September 20.

“And if you are not running, then please come and support the event, and maybe you would like to volunteer as a marshal.”

Elite runners confirmed for the 5k race include Jessica Coulson, who competed at the Anniversary Games at the Olympic Stadium on Saturday, and 2014 British Half Marathon Champion Ryan McLeod.

Paul Evans, a former international athlete and winner of the 1996 Chicago Marathon and Eamonn Martin, the last British athlete to win the London Marathon in 1993, will be part of the prize presentation team.

To enter the race, visit events.ipswichjaffa.org.uk/twilight. The deadline for entering is August 12.

To volunteer, email twilight10k@events.ipswichjaffa.org.uk

For updates, follow the organiser’s Twitter account: @Ipswich10k