Story
Hi everyone, thank you so much for taking the time to visit my page!
UPD:
On Sunday April 26 I completed the London Marathon! I'm so happy I did it🏅against the odds.
Here is my race report about how it was:
The go/no-go decisions and those regarding the race strategy were really tough for me, but the result was worth it. As my ankle had been injured only 6 weeks ago, I obviously was not able to train at a desirable marathon pace or do proper long runs. At first, the tendon was not strong enough, and later, when my leg got better, there simply wasn't enough time before the marathon. So, the load my ankle could have tolerated was unknown, and I decided to follow a run/walk strategy with a very conservative running pace, which I managed to practice during the past weeks and which proved to be OK for my ankle, at least for 30-40 min of running.
From the start to km 5, everything was perfect. Then I ate a gel and my stomach didn't react well to it (even though I'd eaten dozens of the same gels before with zero negative effects!). To avoid a stomach ache, I reduced my gel intake and barely consumed anything except for water and isotonic drinks after km 20. My stomach was fixed, but I ended up being under-fueled and fatigued which might not have happened with proper fueling. Overall, I managed to stick to my strategy throughout the race, although I felt I was underperforming and had a big reserve from the cardiovascular fitness point of view.
And guess what about my injured ankle? It almost didn’t hurt, pain <=2/10. It didn’t hurt at all after km 25. But because it took me so long to get there, and by that time I was already under-fueled, there were no resources (and it didn’t really make sense) to push the race at that point. The finish time was 5:39 (my slowest marathon so far was 4:26).
So yes… that was not my pace. But my aim for this marathon was to have a solid finish without pain or injury flare-up. And that was exactly what happened. I can’t say I don’t have thoughts like “oh, I should have run faster”, but I know I only have them because my leg didn’t collapse.
The event itself was amazing, and the organisation was brilliant. It was a marathon with the largest number of finishers ever, and two runners broke 2 hours this time. Historical day for marathon running! I’m happy to have been part of such a huge event.
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My story:
In November 2014, I ran my first marathon in Auckland, New Zealand — something I honestly never believed I could do, in a place I never even hoped to visit. Then, in 2015, I was lucky enough to complete two more marathons. After that, I thought that would be it… until I moved to the UK and was offered a charity place for the London Marathon 2026 with Number Champions. So now I’m training for my 4th 42.2 km race.
Number Champions is an award-winning charity working to write a new story where every child counts. Every child deserves a good education so they can access better opportunities in life. Yet many children struggle with maths, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. This charity’s trained volunteers use games and other creative activities in one-to-one sessions with children in primary schools. The programme is designed to boost each child’s confidence and skills so they are better able to engage with classroom lessons and achieve their educational potential.
This cause is very important to me because of my own journey. Maths and other exact sciences have always come easily to me, and this opened many doors, giving me opportunities I would never have had otherwise.
I know not every child gets the same start. I want to use the privilege I had growing up to pay it forward and help Number Champions support as many children as possible to have much better life chances. I am aiming to raise £2,000 to support this remarkable charity in their mission. Your support means the world to me and truly makes a difference. Please consider contributing, and thank you so much for being part of this journey with me.
My page donations will be sent directly to Number Champions in a fast and secure way. It’s efficient, saves time, and reduces costs for the charity.
So… it’s time to dust off the training plan, take on the challenge, and may the 4th be with me :)
Feel free to visit the website to find out about all the amazing things the Number Champions team does: