Officials at Huddersfield BID have apologised after an event expected to attract 3,000 people into Huddersfield town centre on Sunday was cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice.

The Yorkshire Soapbox Race was to have been the first event of its kind and more than 30 teams had entered the competition.

Huddersfield Business Improvement District (BID) was forced to pull the plug late on Friday afternoon after an issue with insurance.

BID manager Sam Sharp said: “We are hugely devastated to have to cancel the Yorkshire Soapbox Race. We are deeply sorry for the inconvenience to entrants and those who planned to spectate.

“We outsourced the event organisation to a local company who have experience in planning events of this magnitude. The event cannot take place due to the correct level of insurance not being secured.

“I was made aware of this at lunchtime on Thursday September 16 and since then, all directors and stakeholders worked hard to attempt to secure the correct insurance, for the event organiser.

“We are truly sorry for the disappointment the cancellation will cause. Refunds will be processed to everyone who paid their fee and we can only apologise for the time and effort everyone has given the event.

“Following the success of some of our smaller events, we were looking forward to bringing the town together for the first ever Yorkshire Soapbox Race.

“We’ll be working hard throughout 2022 to deliver lively events in the town centre and get the Soapbox Race back on track.”