LAST MONTH I DID MY
sixth Marathon Major, in
Tokyo, and became the proud
owner of a Six-Star finisher’s
medal. Even though the travel
banjaxed my body clock for a
week afterwards and I had to
share a room with RW’s Kerr y
McCarthy, it was a fantastic experience. After
the race we found ourselves in a tiny bar
(capacity: around six) in the back streets of
Shinjuku, the city’s entertainment district. The
other patrons and the owner were locals, so
we resorted to a bit of mime – pumping arms
and a bit of huffing and puffing – to explain
we’d run the marathon that morning. The
owner was impressed. ‘Ah – strong!’ she
laughed. After that, the sake f lowed and we
ended up making a promise to pop in again
during the Olympics next year.
The way the marathon crosses language
barriers and becomes a kind of shorthand for
strength and fortitude is just one of the reasons
it is such a special event. We offer 26.2 others
in our feature on page 34. One notable reason
is that it brings out the hero in people, as shown
by the 26 runners we photographed for our
subscriber cover (they’re shown on page 38).
Some are running in memory of lost loved ones,
some to prove something to themselves, some
to raise money for charity. But all are united
by their courage and dedication. We salute
them, and marathon runners everywhere.EDITOR’S
LETTER
What do
you think
makes the
marathon so
special?
‘There is nothing
intrinsically
special about
running 26.
miles. Rather,
the marathon
has become
special because
of what it
represents:
determination,
togetherness
and heroism.’- Rick Pearson
‘The emotion
on the face of
everyone who
finishes tells
its own story:
pain/joy/relief/
tears/elation/
exhaustion...you
don’t get them
to the same
extent over other
distances.’- Kerry McCarthy
‘The marathon
reminds me of a
mountain you’ve
always wanted
to climb. “One
day,” you think.
But the thing is,
when you get
to the top, you
can see other
mountains...’- John Carroll
‘It’s the human
stories unfolding
on the course,
told through the
names of lost
loved ones on
the back of
runners’ shirts,
and the personal
challenges and
triumphs etched
on faces. Other
distances are
about running,
but the
marathon is
about so much
more.’- Joe Mackie KRISTEN MASCIA
The health and wellness
journalist, and regular
runner (and not just the
sprint intervals chasing
her toddler), sampled
the cutting edge in
sports nutrition for us,
as a human guinea pig
testing a new ketone
supplement drink in
Liquid Launch on p56.
KATE CARTER
The former Guardian
journalist and sub-
marathoner defies the
omerta surrounding
exercise performance
and the menstrual
cycle to investigate
runners’ experiences
and the latest scientific
knowledge in Running
in Cycles on p50.JOE MACKIE Deputy Editor
KERRY MCCARTHY
Commissioning Editor
RICK PEARSON Section Editor
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