| Thames Hare and Hounds | |
| Type: | Running club Sports club |
| Location: | Wimbledon Common, Roehampton |
| Leader Title: | Founders |
| Leader Name: | Thames Rowing Club |
| League(S): | Surrey Cross Country League |
| Activities: | Cross country running Road running Relays |
Thames Hare and Hounds is the oldest adult cross-country running club in the world, based on the Roehampton end of Wimbledon Common, adjacent to Richmond Park, and draws runners from across south-west London. Both the men's and women's teams compete in the Surrey Cross Country League, division one; the club also fields teams in road races and relays. Thames host races in Richmond Park and on Wimbledon Common, in particular the cross-country Oxford–Cambridge Varsity Match, held each year since 1880[1] on Wimbledon Common after the end of Michaelmas term.
The club was founded in 1868, by members of Thames Rowing Club, particularly Walter Rye.[2] Its name derives from the Victorian game of "Hare and Hounds" or "Paper Chase", in which one runner (the "hare") lays a trail of paper to be followed by the other runners (the "hounds"). The game had been established in schools for decades before the founding of Thames - the Royal Shrewsbury School Hunt has written records going back to 1831.[3]