We’ve all heard of the phenomenal Sabastian Sawe, who became the first to have run the London Marathon sub-two-hours.
But, this year, 38 Guinness World Records (GWR) were broken, and the stories behind these successful attempts are motivations deeper than 26.2 miles.
Jorden Teunissen ran the race in clogs. Dan Hudson ran the race dressed as a microphone. And Chelsea Grogan ran the race with Multiple Sclerosis (MS).
Chelsea said: “I first experienced symptoms as I was training for the 2024 Boston Marathon, and just two days after crossing that finish line, I was sitting in a neurologist’s office at 7:15am seeking answers.”
She was diagnosed with MS in 2024.
Two years earlier, she had started to take running seriously, and, even after her diagnosis, she was unwilling to give up.
The 33-year-old publishing editor said: “While medicine has come such a long way, this disease still has the potential to take away so much physically.
“So, doing something physically challenging in the face of that feels like an act of resistance. It’s a celebration of what my body can do. And it can do hard things!”
The London race was her seventh marathon, but the first in which she broke three hours – which has always been a goal of hers.
For Jorden, time wasn’t a big concern. He knew that running in clogs wasn’t going to be easy.
Most marathon runners did not have to go to the Netherlands to pick up their running shoes before the big day, but Jorden – a Dutchman – was happy to take on the challenge.
In 2022, the 29-year-old accepted a charity place offer from Oxfam in exchange for an attempt at running in clogs. It was a rainy day, and the wet socks he finished the race in left a hole in what he felt he had achieved – so he decided he would try again.
“I don’t have a running journey. I’m not a runner. I’ve never ran a marathon, nor done a half marathon or even a 10 or a 5K,” he said.
“It was really with Oxfam and cheering at the London marathon that I realised I could do it for the world record.
“And that’s where my journey started.”
It was Oxfam’s work against inequality – with the cost of living, climate change, and the war in Gaza – that really motivated Jorden to pursue his GWR attempt.
“There are people in this world that don’t have that choice and live in much more pain and much more horrible circumstances than walking in clogs,” he said.
Elsewhere, Dan ran for Marie Curie, who cared for his late mum in 2022.
His microphone attire was a visual metaphor amplifying the work that Marie Curie do for those at the end-of-life and for their families.
But there is a starker undertone to his motivations.
His mother received care from criminal surgeon Ian Paterson who is currently serving jail time for carrying out unnecessary and unsatisfactory procedures of several women. He was sentenced to 15 years on 17 counts of wounding with intent.
As it currently stands, he is set to be released before the conclusion of the inquests into the death of 64 women will be heard in Birmingham Coroner’s Court – including Dan’s mum.
The importance of calling attention to this pushed Dan, who works as a podcaster, radio host, and stand-up comedian, to get out of his comfort zone.
“The second I leave the house in a costume I am basically going from completely anonymous to as visible as you can possibly be and attracting attention from almost everyone you come across,” he said.
“It took me an hour or so each time just to build up to that level of intensity.”
Featured image credit: Chelsea Grogan
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