Early bird tickets are now available for first North Lanarkshire Half Marathon
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BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Marathons to help Paralympian 'change perceptions'
A double Paralympic champion taking on the Isle of Man's only marathon as part of a 20-race campaign said he hoped the feat would "showcase disability sport".Sprinter Richard Whitehead will compete in the event on Sunday, which starts at 08:00 BST from Mooragh Park alongside the annual held in 1977, the marathon will see 127 people take on the 26.2-mile (42.2km) route and further 517 participate in the shorter 13.1 mile (21.1km) circuit ending at Ramsey Ballacloan Football to be the first athlete in the event's history running on blades, Whitehead said it gave him a "real opportunity to change people's perceptions of what can be possible". Nottingham-based runner, who is a double leg amputee, secured gold medals as a sprinter at the Paralympic Games in Rio and year, he set the world record for the fastest marathon completed by an athlete with bilateral knee amputations in a time of two hours 41 minutes and 36 athlete is now attempting to run 20 marathons in 2025 to take his total up to 100 while raising awareness about making sport more said he wanted to participate in races all over the world to "showcase disability sport and motivate people that anything is possible".The event will be Whitehead's 93rd marathon, having completed the Victoria Falls race in Zimbabwe at the beginning of July, with his next race in Reykjavik Iceland later this taken up running at the age of 28, he ran his first marathon on 2 November 2004 in New York, and is set to run his 100th on the same date back in the city. "Sport has so many opportunities of enrichment, it is not just about participation, it is about the volunteering, spectating and administrating the events," Whitehead said. "Small events such as this should be celebrated, supported and encouraged to grow to a level that really does embrace the community spirit," he are about 25 nationalities represented among this year's entrants, including runners from the United States, Mexico and by the Isle of Man Veteran Athletics Club, the event takes place on open roads, with runners starting between 08:00 and 09:15. Organiser Michael Deverau said there "were not many places where you get better scenery to complete a marathon" as the route goes from the coastline, to the hills, to country said while it was a "challenging" route, the event provided a "party atmosphere" with music playing as the runners complete the loop and crowds cheering them on at the said the popularity of running had increased in recent years, which he believed was down to the rise of online initiatives such as Couch to 5K, as well as the success of Manx athletes in competitions. "With the recent Island Games, both the winners of the half-marathon, Christa Cain and Corin Leeming, were from the Isle of Man," he both athletes taking on the weekend's event there was a "good chance" that the race's records would be broken this year, he continued."It is a great achievement, a beautiful race and brilliant atmosphere," he added. Read more stories from the Isle of Man on the BBC, watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer and follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and X.
Daily Record
4 days ago
- Daily Record
Olympic athlete swims length of Loch Lomond as he is named 'King of the Lakes' after record-breaking feat
Olympian Hector Pardoe swam the entire length of Loch Lomond in pitch black, and then the entire length of Windermere and Lake Bala to complete his epic '3 lakes challnege to raise awareness over polluted waterways. Olympic swimmer Hector Pardoe made a big splash through the night as he swam the entire length of Loch Lomond to raise funds and awareness around pollution of the country's natural waters. Hector, who has twice represented Team GB at the Olympics in Marathon Open Water Swimming, took on the Three Lakes Challenge for Surfers Against Sewage last week by swimming all three of the UK's largest lakes in just 24 hours. Setting off at midnight on Friday, August 1, he swam the loch in pitch black, before going on to swim Windermere and Lake Bala. Upon completion the opening leg of the lung-bursting challenge on Loch Lomond, Hector was congratulated by Dumbarton MP Douglas McAllister and Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie, who threw their support behind the campaign. After meeting Hector at the finishing line in Balloch, Mr McAllister said: 'I was delighted to meet Hector and congratulate him as he completed the first leg of his three lakes challenge in Balloch. 'After raising the issue of water pollution in our shores and on our beaches in Parliament, Surfers Against Sewage contacted me to invite me along to Loch Lomond to meet Hector at the finish line. 'An absolutely incredible feat and I'm so proud that he chose my constituency of West Dunbartonshire to complete the first leg of this gruelling challenge.' Hector first set off from Ardlui at midnight, completing the swim in seven hours and 46 minutes after battling freezing, pitch-black waters, all to demand cleaner and safer water. After Loch Lomond, Hector swam Lake Windermere in England, and finally, Lake Bala (Llyn Tegid) in Wales where he finished with some world records, and having raised vital funds and awareness in the fight against sewage pollution. Across the UK, rivers and lakes are being polluted by sewage. In 2024 alone, water companies dumped raw sewage into rivers and seas nearly 600,000 times – all while paying out £1.2 billion to shareholders. 'The UK Government is currently undergoing a major review into how our water industry is run in the most significant reform since privatisation', Mr McAllister added. 'I'm committed to continuing to advocate for Scottish Government action to clean up our rivers and our beaches.' The full swim was double the length of the English Channel and covered 34.5 miles of open water. Hector completed the challenge in under 22 hours, earning him the moniker of 'King of the Lakes'. The campaign is inspired by the 3 Peaks Challenge, whereby participants climb the three largest mountains of England, Scotland, and Wales in just 24 hours. Hector is aiming to raise £15,000 for Surfers Against Sewage to support the vital work they do to fight for clean water. To donate to Hector's effort, click here.
The Independent
4 days ago
- The Independent
Tower Bridge and Cutty Sark on Big Half finisher medal designed with refugees
Finishers in next month's The Big Half in central London will be receive a medal and T-shirt featuring Tower Bridge and Cutty Sark which was designed with the help of refugee runners. The Coopah Refugee Run Club partners with charities to help migrants settle into life in the UK through local run clubs, personalised coaching, community support, and life-long access to the Coopah training app. Some of its members have helped to create the medal and long-sleeved T-shirt designs which include interlocking rings to represent the diverse journeys that will unite at the Big Half on Sunday September 7. The 13.1 mile route starts close to Tower Bridge and finishes beside the Cutty Sark in Greenwich. The confetti, sprinkled on the medal, is said to be a celebration of the event and of the movement experienced. Rawand Gurun, 28, who works for the NHS after studying nursing, moved to the UK from Kurdistan during the Covid-19 pandemic. He was volunteering for a homeless charity when he met Coopah co-founder, Dan Strang, who introduced him to the Refugee Run Club. Initially unable to run 5km in one go, Mr Gurun became a regular at the Brueton Park parkrun in Solihull, West Midlands, and completed the 2024 TCS London Marathon. 'I love the running culture in the UK,' he said. ' People you run with become close friends and you're all supporting each other. ' Running is free and available whenever you want. It's not about being the best. It's just about gradually increasing your mileage and improving your lifestyle.' Mr Gurun added: 'Taking part in events is not just about getting a medal – it's the feeling of people cheering you on, so we wanted to show how you feel that support and how joyful it makes you. 'We also wanted to include some London landmarks like the Cutty Sark. It feels big when you run past certain places and it affects you emotionally.' Paul Mwila, 41, who came to the UK from Zambia in 2022, is awaiting a final decision on his residency from the Home Office. 'Coopah's run club has kept me afloat during really difficult times. So many of the experiences I've had are thanks to them,' he said. 'I've met so many people, been to new places, and found a community.' Mr Mwila, who lives at a hotel assigned by the Home Office, ran through the streets of Crystal Palace at 4am when he first came to London so that nobody would see him. In 2023, he met Coopah's Andrew Laidlaw in a hotel lobby and, soon afterwards, Mr Mwila joined his first group run at Crystal Palace parkrun. He ran his first marathon, the 2025 TCS London Marathon in April. 'Running will be part of my life for as long as my legs let me – hopefully a long, long time,' he said. He was delighted to be part of the design team, adding: 'We wanted to show how the landmarks connect to our lives, and that no matter what you're going through, difficult times always come to an end.' More than 280 local community groups based in the four host boroughs of Tower Hamlets, Lewisham, Southwark and Greenwich, will take part in The Big Half which offers discounted entry fees of £25 (compared to the standard £56) to encourage wider access to running. More than 25,000 participants are registered to take part in the Big Half festival of running on September 7, which also includes the Big Mile, a family-friendly one-mile event, and the New Balance Big Relay, in which teams of four complete 3.1 miles each of the half-marathon route. Entries for 2025 are sold out. Among those taking part are 40 women from Sole Striders, a female-only community and run club which was founded in 2024. Sanaa Qureshi, senior community engagement manager at London Marathon Events which organises the Big Half, said: 'Community and inclusivity is at the heart of the Big Half. 'We are proud to work with groups like Coopah's Refugee Run Club and Sole Striders – particularly given their work with migrant and refugee communities and women across London, groups we know are often marginalised when it comes to access to sport and physical activity.'
