Billy’s Pre London Catch Up

With Billy now easing into his taper-and preparing for his very first marathon- it felt like the perfect time to catch up with him and talk all things running ahead of London 2026.

What inspired you to enter the clubs ballot?

When you have the opportunity to be in contention to get a London marathon spot, you are gonna take it. Especially, when the run club ballot was after the results of the official one and you didn’t make it that way. Having a second chance is very rare and something you can’t miss out on.

How did you feel when you won?

I was honestly 💩ing it a little bit 🤣. The way the club organised it was incredible but also so nerve wracking and I told myself beforehand not to get excited as I knew I wasn’t going to win. So when it happened I was overwhelmed with emotion.

How have you found the training and fitting it in with life?

This has been my first ever marathon training block so I had a lot of new experiences to get through and learn.

What does it mean to you to be representing the club?

Leaving my home in Guernsey and making Farnham my new one has given me some amazing memories and great friends. I felt comfortable and welcomed in with open arms as soon as I joined the club and have gained friends and blossomed more as a runner through this. So having this as an opportunity to represent all the amazing people at the club is a massive honor to me.

What are you looking forward to most on the day?

The thing I’m looking forward to the most on the day is honestly crossing that finish line, knowing that I put all my heart into such a hard and rare experience to go through.

What has been the hardest part of training?

I feel that hardest part of training has been feeling confident when a run doesn’t go the way you thought or something felt harder than expected.

How do you fuel your runs?

I will be fueling my runs using Precision gels from Alton sport using the clubs discount 😉

What’s the race shoe and why?

My race shoes are the ASICS Meta Speed Sky Tokyo. I’ve used them to gain a PB in my last half marathon and they feel the best and fastest shoes for me to use.

What’s the best piece of advice you have been given about running a marathon?

The advice I very much need to listen to is not go out to hot and control your pace.

What is going to be your post race meal and drink?

I haven’t thought about my post marathon meal yet, so any recommendations would be great. I typically go for a good old pizza and a full fat coke to get my carbs and glucose back up so I don’t feel like complete death 😂

Thank you, Billy for taking the time to share your thoughts and preparation with us ahead of London. Everyone at the club is wishing you all the very best for an incredible London 2026 experience- we’ll all be cheering you on every step of the way.