A personal London 2012 legacy

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Legacy is a word constantly associated with the London 2012 Olympic Games. It was so important, they even created a corporation to ensure that such a legacy was delivered. There has been much argument, in the years since, about how successfully it has been delivered. What is certain is that many of us have our own stories, a personal London 2012 legacy. I am no different.

Accidental reflections

I have written about a few accidents recently, not least the accidental streak of ten marathons in ten days to launch my Fun Before Fifty fundraising campaign for Mind. This morning was another accident. I had no intention of being in Stratford but that is exactly where I arrived just before 8am.

My wife was travelling out to Essex so I thought I could spend some time with her and then run home from somewhere en route. Stratford fitted the bill perfectly so I walked into an eerily quiet Westfield Centre as it was slowly waking up to the new week.

I took out my phone out to have a quick look at the best route back. I predictably also checked my social media quickly, prior to setting off, and was replying to a message on Facebook when the daily “Facebook Memories” popped up.

August 7 has, by all accounts, been a productive day in my life judging by the quantity of memories! The undoubted priority highlight, however, was the day at London 2012 with my brother from another mother, Steve.

I smiled at memories from a magical day and quickly reflected how much had changed. I also realised that I was stood in almost the exact spot as the photo below which defines my personal London 2012 legacy.

In 2012, I definitely looked a little different!!
Memorable moments

That London 2012 experience is among the best memories of my life. I am a sporting tragic after all and this is one of the great global occasions. It was even better shared with the man who who would go on to be my Best Man and vice-versa. We had tickets for a morning track and field session, an evening of hockey featuring the Great Britain women’s side. The additional comedy (for us) was an afternoon of Greco-Roman wrestling.

Steve took the above photo outside the stadium prior to that morning session. We were delighted to see that we’d maxed out with the 200m Heats and a certain Usain Bolt.

So to the legacy

I didn’t leave London that night and suddenly decide to become a marathon runner! My personal London 2012 legacy was born, however, on that grey and wet London day. I had grown up playing sport to a high level but mental illness and subsequent recovery had robbed me of taking that further.

I always found it difficult to adjust to playing sport for leisure and not as a competitive activity. It was all or nothing, not surprising given that my father was an international sportsperson.

That lack of physical activity over a sustained period, a sedentary day job, poor diet (kebabs, curry and beer) were all evident in my appearance and health. I wanted change but, deep inside, I was petrified about taking that journey.

I was, however, absolutely inspired by so much that day and several others at the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Nothing, though, suggested the journey that I would go on. I will fast forward five months to January 2013.

Trousergate

It was a Monday morning in the office and I was making a sugary black coffee. This was all routine! I didn’t get to the dazzling place of 18 stone 10 pounds (118 kg) without a LOT of sugar!

I dropped something from my pocket and, in bending down to pick it up, heard the unmistakeable sound of ripping material! Yes, I had split a pair of 40″ waist trousers. I took an early lunch and headed into the shops to find a new pair. The trouble was that the largest size in any of Primark, M&S or Burton’s was a portly 38″. This consigned me to a day of shuffling around in a way to minimise visibility as work from home was not a thing back then.

Anytime

Back in the office the next morning with a new pair of trousers after a wider search the previous evening, I saw a flyer in the post for a new gym opening next to the office. They were offering 50% off membership for the first three months.

I immediately discarded it. Someone in my physical condition deserved no place in a gym (or so I’d convinced myself). A colleague was reading a copy of the same flyer (they never just post one through a business letterbox!) later that day and mentioned that it was open 24 hours and that she was going to join. I thought to myself, “good luck to her” and went about my business.

That flyer, however, chased me around for the next few days and, in the end, I went with a few colleagues to have a tour. It shocked me, more than anyone, when I was the ONLY one to join! There was a method in the madness and the clue is in the name of the club (gym), Anytime Fitness. I signed the membership form and, little did I know, begun changing my life and cementing my personal London 2012 legacy.

Early mornings

The method in the madness was simple. I caught the bus at 4:38am every morning to arrive at Anytime Fitness just before 5am. An empty gym was waiting which meant the only witnesses to my pain and embarrassment were me, the treadmill and security cameras. I knew I wouldn’t overcome the embarrassment of others looking on at 19 stone of me almost crashing through the machine with every step.

At first, I might “run” for 30 seconds and then walk, stand still even, for about 3 or 4 minutes. In time that became a 30 second run with a 2 minute walk. I eventually made it to being able to run for a minute and, believe me, that was something to celebrate.

It was painful, laborious and I couldn’t see where it was going or how I was going to move beyond. I was losing a little weight based on calorie control and this exercise but it was minimal. Something had to give before my willpower did.

Hello Mind

Mind are the reason I am alive today. After multiple suicide attempts, it was them who gave me the support I needed and led me to a diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder Type I.

They saved my life back in 2006 and, in 2013, would be at the heart of my unlikely story, my personal London 2012 legacy.

I was on the treadmill and on the verge of quitting when I decided to enter the Great Manchester Run in May 2013. It was already March and I still couldn’t run a bath but I knew I had to do this. The minute that someone donated even £1, I knew I would not turn back. I am so glad that I have remained true to that word.

The Great Manchester Run

I look back fondly at the 2013 Great Manchester Run. The great things about it were my size (still a whopping 16 stone), my friends who travelled en masse, and putting the two fingers up at Old Trafford when we ran through. The latter is not my greatest moment but this lifelong Liverpool supporter couldn’t help himself!

My cramp was also great the following morning but it was worth it! 68 or so minutes of running, walking, limping and grimacing… the beginning of an incredible journey.

The Great Manchester Run 2013 – ran a bit, walked a bit, crawled a bit!
What happened next?

I had Nando’s! That’s what typically happens next after a race! I was also soon able to treat myself to a pair of 36″ waist trousers. That was progress.

What then happened was that I asked Mind if I could have a place in the 2013 Great North Run. I confess that given the nature of soreness for days after the 10km in Manchester, the thought of a half-marathon seemed like a prison sentence, not to mention wildly optimistic!

In September that year, I lined up in Newcastle for that iconic 13.1 miles. It rained, and then it rained again! I ran (and kept on running). I smiled and lapped up jelly beans from every child between Gateshead and South Shields! And I arrived at that finish line and did a little jig of delight,

I repeated the jig of delight a fortnight later at London’s Royal Parks Half-Marathon and then very emotionally in my home city of Birmingham a week later.

I still didn’t see myself as a runner but was having the time of my life and there was only one frontier left to cross.

The Big One

I loved watching the London Marathon on television and had done since I was a child. I had no dreams of running it though, that would test even the definition of fantasy.

Nothing is quite as iconic as those 26.2 miles of London in our sport. It is a day when a city comes together, when people come from far and wide, when many achieve way beyond their wildest dreams and everyone universally encourages strangers they will never meet. That is the London Marathon.

I was amazed when Mind offered me a place in their 2014 team. I was petrified but couldn’t wait. When the day arrived, 13 April 2014, it didn’t disappoint. Marathons are hard work and they are meant to be! This is why so few achieve the absolutely iconic distance of 26.2 miles. That day on the sunlit streets of London, I laughed, grimaced and wept in equal amounts, the weeping combining pain and joy.

Other than my wedding day and Liverpool winning the European Cup (six times!), no day shines as brightly.

London 2014
The finish line of Marathon number one – London – April 13, 2014
We are Mind

When I started running, I wanted to achieve some small goals.

  • Lose a few pounds (about 3 or 4 stone)
  • Raise a few pounds (£200)
  • Run 10km (Great Manchester Run 2013)

The reality has been rather different but I always ensure I am grounded and remember where and why I started. My interview, in the clip below, was filmed the week after the London Marathon in 2014 and is always a reference point to this journey.

So where now?

It has been the time of my life. I have raised just over £45,000 since 2013 due to the great generosity of so many. As of today, I have run 65 marathons. I have won a Mind Media Award in 2017 and, latterly, become a Trustee of the charity.

It is clear that I can’t continue fundraising forever which is why the Fun Before Fifty campaign was born. The campaign started on 14 July 2023 and will end on 1 June 2024, my 50th birthday.

The goals are simple, that I will run my 100th marathon on 1 June 2024 and that I will reach the target of £50,000 raised.

You can follow the campaign through my Fun Before Fifty Diaries and the event calendar.

The final word

The final word is legacy. Standing in virtually the same spot this morning as I did in 2012, I could scarcely believe what has happened in my life since then. Of course there has been adversity; I’ve been without a job for most of this year, there have been bereavements, mental health episodes. It is all part of the journey.

Running has taught me so many lessons, however, and the biggest of those is resilience and how we overcome those challenges. I speak about it in this episode of the RunAlive Podcast.

That personal London 2012 legacy transcends sport and running, it drives into the very essence of who I am. It is the greatest gift from God, one which I steward wisely, one which has transformed my life and which I will continue to use for the benefit of others.

11 years on…

You’ve seen the image from 2012! Here’s a quick shot from this morning. I love both of these guys, they are both so important in my journey. They are two very different people, however, and one of my biggest learnings and my biggest advice to readers is to embrace change, evolve as a person, to use that evolution even when you leave behind chapters that you’ve loved.

7 August 2023 – lots of memories, lots of smiles

Thanks for reading, take care and I’ll be updating the diaries soon!

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