When Seconds Depended on Clarity

The Background

Large-scale marathons are complex environments. Thousands of runners, volunteers, and spectators move through tight spaces, while medical teams remain on high alert for emergencies that can arise without warning.

First responders are well-trained and prepared. Protocols are in place. Yet in the intensity of live events, even small moments of confusion can delay critical care.

The Challenge

Despite experience and preparation, injured runners were not always being reached as quickly as they could be. The instinctive assumption was that response times needed to be faster, or procedures more rigorous.

But adding speed alone did not address the underlying friction. The challenge lay elsewhere. It layed in how responders identified and located those who needed help in crowded, fast-moving situations.

How GraspCo Helped

GraspCo worked with the team to step back and examine the experience of emergency response as it unfolded in real time.

In the room, participants mapped actual scenarios, traced moments of hesitation, and explored how information, visibility, and decision-making intersected during critical incidents. Instead of starting with solutions, the focus was on understanding where clarity broke down and why.

As assumptions were surfaced and reframed, a simple insight emerged: responders needed a clearer, more immediate way to identify injured runners at the point of action.

The Shift

That insight led to the development of the First Aider Marker. A visible system designed to help responders locate and reach injured runners more quickly and confidently.

Beyond the solution itself, teams gained a shared understanding of how to approach high-pressure challenges: by prioritising clarity before speed, and understanding before action.

Why It Lasted

GraspCo doesn’t deliver one-off workshops. We help organisations build a shared way of thinking. One that holds up under complexity, uncertainty, and pressure. The impact lasts because teams leave with clarity, alignment, and a repeatable approach they can apply long after the room empties.

We help people build the skills and mindsets to thrive in a changing world.

Our programmes are hands-on, human, and built to last Programmes that are grounded in Design Thinking and the GRASP™ Methodology.

We don’t just tell you what to do. We show you how to do it, through immersive, practical experiences that turn learning into lasting growth.