The timing of the Manfred Mann's Earth Band version made it a success, and it reached number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States.

Thomas was inspired to write "The Runner" by the story of Terry Fox, a Canadian athlete who lost a leg to cancer and attempted to run with his prosthetic leg from the East Coast of Canada in Newfoundland and Labrador to the West Coast in British Columbia, but was forced to stop in Ontario due to medical concerns when cancer had been discovered in both of his lungs.

[1] The timing on the Manfred Mann's Earth Band version was especially good, as it came out right before the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles, prompting especially heavy play.

It was also included on the compilations The Best of Manfred Mann's Earth Band Re-Mastered, Odds & Sods – Mis-takes & Out-takes, the Leftovers disc of the 40th Anniversary box set and the deluxe edition of Mannthology.

The single edit (which fades early) is rarer on CD, having only been reissued on The Complete Greatest Hits of Manfred Mann and the 50th anniversary release Mannthology.