Peterborough grandfather overcomes doubts and lack of running experience to complete London Marathon

A grandfather from Peterborough showed true grit when he overcame nerves and self-doubt to complete the London Marathon.

Mohammed ‘Ash’ Ashraf took on the 26.2 mile challenge on April 23 despite having only ever completed his local park run once.

“This was the first time I had ever run an event in my life,” the 53 year-old admits. “Before this, I had only ever done one park run just a week before.

"To be honest I was surprised to be accepted when I entered the London Marathon.”

But after injuring himself twice while jogging to train for the race, he decided to give up.

"I just kept thinking my body can’t handle it,” he said.

A family member of Ash’s convinced him to give it a go, emphasising it was an honour to be accepted for the London Marathon.

"So we worked out a training plan and I had just four months to get myself ready,” he explained. “Then one month during this time was Ramadan, so I couldn’t train properly then. The first two months I just ran on a treadmill as it was too cold outside, with the last two months before the race being on the roads.”

But the thoughts of self-doubt kept creeping back in.

"Even during this time, I was so nervous and scared that I wouldn’t be able to do it that I didn’t even book my hotel until the Friday before the race,” he said.

“While training I learnt that when I began to feel overwhelmed about the whole task ahead of me, I just focused my mind of taking the next few steps. Once I realised that is all I need to concentrate on, that really helped.”

Ash managed to complete the London Marathon in a time of 7hrs1m.

“I just kept focussing on one step at a time, and not thinking about how far I still had to go,” he recounts. “I think the energy from the crowd and the adrenaline rush just kept me going.”

Ash said he didn’t invite many people to watch him on the day as he didn’t want the added pressure oh having to complete the course, but two of his children and two grandchildren still turned up to cheer him along the route.

“Finishing the marathon was quite emotional, especially seeing my children and grandchildren on the other side,” he adds. “I was quite shocked I had managed to get over the line, and felt a huge sense of relief. I’d say the hardest part was the mental battle, constantly wondering if it was going to be possible for me.”

Ash, a co-owner of Stars Day Nurseries, in Peterborough, now plans to talk to the children about the benefits of running and staying fit, while showing them his finisher’s medal.

He now joins the 56,640 runners who completed the marathon and have a new Guinness World Records for the most number of finishers in a marathon.