YOU’RE ! AMAZING
Tom Evans had always been a keen sportsman but running only entered the equation last November. ‘I was in Wales doing some military training and I came across route markings that looked as if they might be for a race,’ explains the 25-year-old army captain. ‘They were for a 76km trail ultra taking place the next day and I decided to sign up.’ Tom not only won the race – he broke the course record. A few months later, he was lining up for the Marathon des Sables: ‘It was a case of jumping in at the deep end,’ laughs Tom. ‘My first multi-stage race, first self-sufficiency race and first time running on sand!’ Tom came third and his success continues; he won the 62.6-mile Race to the Tower in June before heading to Switzerland for hill training. ‘ It’s a like a dream come true,’ he says. There’s nothing half-hearted about the challenge Melanie Irwin set herself at the start of 2017. The 50-year-old from East Sussex is running a half marathon every month in aid of Tommy’s, a charity that funds research into pregnancy complications. ‘I suffered six miscarriages before I had my twins, Charlie and Alfie,’ says Melanie. She is more than halfway through her challenge, and has raised nearly £1,000. ‘I’m supporting Tommy’s because there was no need for me to lose so many babies,’ she says. So far, Melanie has run her fastest half (Brighton, 1:54) and her toughest (The Hurt, 3:14 – ‘the time says it all!’). ‘The boys love coming to watch me run,’ she says. ‘They can’t wait to join me.’