‘IT WAS A LIFE-TURNING MOMENT’

HAMZAH ALQHFA, 23, ORIGINALLY FROM YEMEN

‘Before I came to the UK, I had never run before.

I played football as a kid, but for years afterwards I didn’t do any kind of exercise. When Coopah encouraged me to run, I wasn’t a fan of the idea at first. I’d never done it as an adult, I’d never exercised, and running is hard! My first time at parkrun was on 7 May 2022 – I remember the date. It wasn’t because I wanted to, it was because everyone in the Coopah group was doing it and I felt I should join in. But I did it, and I finished in 24:30.

I live in a first-floor flat, the kitchen is on the ground floor and it was a big challenge to walk up and down the stairs for a few days after that parkrun!

I thought running was something I would never do again. But it was a life-turning moment. Everything went 180 degrees.

It can take years to process our application to remain in the UK

and during those first few months you’re not allowed to do anything at all, so you’re looking for a distraction. Running became that distraction.

As well as encouragement, Coopah provides a training plan and goals,

so you have an aim to work towards and something to distract you. Running provided both. It also gets you together with other people who share the same circumstances and people sharing your aims and goals.

My first long run was the Oxford Half Marathon in October 2022, which I ran in 1:18.

I was aiming for 1:30, but it was so exciting, there was so much passion and joy, and you realise you’re 12 minutes ahead of schedule! I’ve since done the Coventry Half, the London Marathon (in 3:05) and the Lake District Sky Trails 15K.

I thought a marathon would be my longest ever run, but then I heard of ultramarathons.

Freya Morgan was running to raise awareness for refugees in detention: 200km from Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol to Gatwick. So I joined her for 85km. I wasn’t trained to run for that long. I just thought I’d run to the point where I couldn’t run any more and at 85km my ITB hurt, which ultimately meant three months of no running. But it was another turning point for me.

The Lake District was such fun. It was a challenging, dangerous, crazy experience.

We were camping the night before and it was raining, so we got a hell of a night. And the terrain has so many ups and downs. You get to the point where you think, “Yeah, I’m done, I’m lost. Is it safe to go down that mountain?” It was everything you would expect from a trip: the joy, the danger, the excitement – a tough experience.

I have a computer science scholarship at the University of Birmingham now

and while I’m studying, I’m training for this year’s London Marathon, aiming for under three hours this time, to be guaranteed a place for the year after. I’m curious about ultramarathons as well. I would like to experience that in some form of official challenge.’