The plans for Bushy Park's parkrun to return are set to be put on hold.

This week parkrun said its hugely popular 5k runs could return at the end of October.

And yesterday saw a huge announcement of government plans to introduce a new cap of six people on gatherings to stop a further rise in coronavirus cases.

Global chief operating officer Tom Williams tweeted: "Lots of people asking if this impacts @parkrunUK - as a sporting event we are exempt. Also worth noting end October is a way away."

But the biggest obstacle to the return of Bushy Park parkrun appears to be the Royal Parks.

The charity told Nub News that they could not reinstate the parkrun events in its Royal parks "for the foreseeable future"

Parkrun has become a global phenomenon since it was founded by Paul Sinton-Hewitt right here in Bushy Park in October 2004 with more than 200,000 regular participants around the world.

A spokesperson for the Royal Parks said: "Bushy Park is the home of parkrun, hosting the very first event in 2004, and since then it has been an important fixture for the local community, bringing people together and boosting physical and mental wellbeing.

"However, in recent months it has not been possible to hold the event, due to social distancing requirements and we are not yet able to reinstate this event in Richmond or Bushy Parks for the foreseeable future.

"We understand how disappointing this is for runners, but our priority is to support the national effort in coming out of this crisis, provide open space for the public and protect everyone's health."

The organisation said its statement related to parkrun events in all the royal parks, which also include Richmond Park, Green Park, Greenwich Park, Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, St James's Park and Regents Park.

The initial reports of the return of parkrun have caused enormous excitement among the running community, including the famous names who regularly take part.

Ben Shephard, a presenter on Good Morning Britain, who regularly takes part in the Richmond event, tweeted his support for the return saying "This is great news! We've missed you Parkrun".

Similarly, BBC Newsreader Sophie Raworth, another running enthusiast who regularly takes part in Richmond parkrun, tweeted "parkrun… the return" with a smiley face.

However it now appears we will have to wait a little longer for parkrun to return.