Proving age is just a number as runner is ranked one of the best in UK

DISCOVERING you are one of the best marathon runners in the UK and in the top 125 worldwide was simply “mindblowing” for a Derbyshire athlete - especially at the age of 66.

- By EVA MILLETT

Sue Pinder from Heanor Running Club didn’t realise her performance at the London Marathon would have such implications as she now prepares to jet off to Cape Town to compete in a world championships.

Sue said: “I just couldn't believe it. I really could not believe what was happening. It was just mind blowing, really. It took me a few days to get it into my head.

“I told my family and they just said ‘Wow, in complete disbelief.”

Sue, from Ilkeston, took a 15-year break from marathon running until 2021 when she ran the Manchester Marathon. This year, after receiving a notification on her phone for the last chance to enter the ballot for the London Marathon 2025, she decided to enter.

Despite falling during the run and having to walk part of the way, she completed the course in four hours and two minutes.

“It was the slowest I'd ever ran a marathon,” says Sue.

“I thought, perhaps it’s time to call it a day now because I'll be 67 in a few weeks’ time. I thought it was my body telling me to stop.”

But that time was enough to qualify her for the Abbott World Marathon Majors Age Group World Championships in Cape Town, where she will compete later this year.

The Good for Age (GFA), qualifying times are based on age and gender, which Sue used as a benchmark for her most recent marathon.