Everyone who takes part in the adidas Manchester Marathon is an inspiration, and we know as well as most the hard work and dedication it takes to tackle those humbling 26.2 miles.

To celebrate our incredible participants, we have chosen to highlight five who are going either further this year on Sunday 16th April. From overcoming physical difficulties to making amazing contributions to charities, you’ll want to keep an eye out for these phenomenal human beings on the big day.

1) Joshua Patterson

The adidas Manchester Marathon will be Made in Chelsea star Joshua Patterson’s 49th marathon, as part of his epic challenge to run a marathon in every UK city in 76 consecutive days. That’s 76 marathons, every day, for 2 months and 15 days! Manchester will support Joshua’s overall goal of raising £1,000,000 for the Samaritans charity. He commented that “setting myself near impossible challenges has been a vital tool to attract attention and to shine a light on mental health. I hope that this mammoth challenge will inspire people to reach out, speak out, and know they are not alone”.

Photo by Reese Chapman.

2) Emon Choudhury

The ‘Race Across the World’ winner and charity fundraising extraordinaire Emon Choudhury will be running the adidas Manchester Marathon during Ramadan once more this year – a challenge that requires great resolve and carefully planned training. Not only that, Emon is also running to support the Motor Neurone Association after an encounter with Leeds Rhino rugby legend Rob Burrows last year. Check out our full interview with Emon here.

 

3) Charlotte Ellis

This year, GB athlete Charlotte is running the adidas Manchester Marathon for the second time in her career, with the aim of qualifying for the prestigious Paralympic Games (held in Paris in 2024). Despite being discouraged from sports as a child due to sight impairment, Charlotte has stamped her name on the paratriathlon World and European Championships. We spoke with the athlete and role model ahead of the big day on Sunday 16th April in an interview here.

 

 

4) Kate Knight

Kate Knight’s love of running inspired her to set a huge target of running 300 before her 70^th birthday – however, with the rate she’s going, it looks like she’ll be closer to 400! Kate’s motivation and positive outlook has helped her overcome major surgery and manage her arthritis as she runs. She will be running to support two charities: United Response, a learning disability charity, in support of her brother-in-law and also the SASH (East Surrey Hospital), charity, where she works as a Nursing Assistant. Read Kate’s full story here.

 

5) Stephen McCann

Stephen is a Merseyside firefighter who is running the adidas Manchester Marathon to raise funds for the British Heart Foundation (BHF) in memory of his dad. “He sadly passed away in April last year aged just 61,” said Stephen. “He went for an operation on his heart known as ablation surgery but it didn’t go to plan and he sadly passed away on the operating table”. Ablation is a treatment that aims to correct certain types of abnormal heart rhythms by blocking certain electrical pathways in the heart.  You can read the full story here and donate to Stephen’s JustGiving page here.