The power to inspire: How nonagenarian Grace Chambers isn't parkrun's only unlikely super runner

As 97-year-old Grace Chambers becomes the oldest person in Europe to complete 250 parkruns, we look back at some of the inspirational parkrunners we've featured on Running Tales

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Everyone who has taken part in parkrun, the 5km event which has become a worldwide sensation, will know it has the power to inspire.

But few stories can have reached the levels that Grace Chambers’ did last weekend.

At 97-years-old and having had heart surgery just four week earlier, the nonagenarian completed her 250th parkrun at Ormeau Park in south Belfast.

In doing so, she became the oldest person in Europe to reach the milestone.

Incredibly, Grace only started parkrunning when she was 88 as a way of recovering from a previous surgery.

Her story is typical of the way parkrun creates unlikely and inspiring stories. Today, we decided to take a look back at just some of the parkrunning tales we’ve previously featured.

Prepare to be amazed…

The grandfather of Northampton parkrun:

Bob Emmerson was instantly recognisable at parkrun in his favourite Silverstone 10k t-shirt

In 2023, at the age of 90, self-proclaimed ‘old jogger’ Bob Emmerson ran his 500th parkrun, completing the milestone at his favourite Northampton Racecourse venue.

Sadly, Bob passed away earlier this year, his final parkrun tally being 537, a number which friends and family wore during a tribute run for him in July.

Bob’s parkrunning legacy saw him become the oldest man to reach 400 and then 500 parkruns, and although that record has since been beaten it remains an incredible achievement.

The Walgrave resident always loved running and clocked up more than 100,000 miles during his lifetime. Highlights included running 19 London Marathons, the London to Brighton Ultra, and becoming the British 100km champion for his age group.

But it was at parkrun where Bob found his running family and was able to provide inspiration to people of all ages as he tackled the 5k distance week in, week out.

The 5k Your Way ambassador giving back to parkrun:

Delaney Dawson with fellow 5k Your Way ambassador Matthew Wing. Picture by John Boyer

5k Your Way is an incredible parkrun partner which encourages people impacted by cancer to walk, jog, run, cheer, volunteer or simply have coffee and a chat on the last Saturday of every month.

Operating at more than 100 designated parkruns across the UK and Ireland, it provides motivation and rehabilitation for those with cancer or who are in remission.

• READ: Guest blog - How the 5k Your Way revolution is 'kindly, quietly, powerfully' getting cancer patients moving

Delaney Dawson, who was already a Run Director at Nonsuch parkrun, became a 5k Your Way ambassador after being diagnosed with breast cancer herself.

She not only used parkrun to aid her own recovery, but now spends her time giving back, helping others on their cancer journeys.

Delaney told Running Tales: “Going to parkrun really suited me because it aligned with my own experiences and my own attitude of, ‘I'm not going to think myself into feeling ill. I'm going to do what I can when I can’.

“And that's what 5k Your Way is about. Every month we have people there, some who walk the whole thing, some who walk part of it, some who run, some who volunteer.

“We really do have people doing a bit of everything. Whatever you're doing within the group, you get a really big cheer and loads of support from the parkrun team as well.”

The parkrunners who spend their weekends searching for alphabet gold:

Zuiderpark is one of just a handful of parkrun ‘Z’s’ in the world - making it a much coveted trophy for Alphabeteers

As well as being full of inspirational runners, parkrun also provides its own forms of motivation.

One of these is the series of weird and wonderful challenges that have cropped up around the event, from ‘Stopwatch Bingo,’ which involves collecting all the finish times from 00 to 59 seconds, to joining the Pirates’ Club by completing seven parkruns beginning with the letter C, and one starting with the letter R.

Perhaps the most famous of all is the alphabet challenge, which sees parkrunners endeavour to run at locations starting with every letter of the alphabet.

Although the challenge is technically impossible as there aren’t any parkruns beginning with ‘X’ that hasn’t stopped parkrunners travelling the length and breadth of the UK - and beyond - in search of events beginning with unusual letters.

Perhaps the rarest is the much-coveted ‘Z’ with venues such as Ziegelwiese in Germany and Zandvlei in South Africa (and more commonly Zuiderpark in The Netherlands) becoming popular with Alphabeteers the world over.

The Arrow Valley parkrunners making headlines:

Doug Richards, who has run a lifetime total of 24,902 miles, is a regular at Arrow Valley parkrun

Every parkrun has its own stories, but few have as many as Arrow Valley parkrun in the midlands.

Runners who take part in the event include Doug Richards, who has run across all seven continents, including in Antarctica and across the Sahara and Gobi Deserts.

Then there is Nigel Watson, who overcame prostate cancer to complete ‘the toughest footrace on the planet,’ The Marathon des Sables.

But perhaps the best known of the Arrow Valley contingent was Lizzie Tovey.

Despite only taking up running when she started to struggle with her eyesight, the visually impaired runner completed the 2019 London Marathon.

Further challenges followed when she was diagnosed with terminal cancer, but she still managed to complete the 2020 marathon as a virtual event, taking it on over three stages including a gruelling night run.

Along the way, Lizzie's journey saw her campaign to have guide runners given London Marathon finishers medals, while she completed a self-isolated 26.2 miles on the treadmill - complete with an array of fancy dress outfits.

Sadly, Lizzie passed away on Boxing Day 2020, aged just 47. A section of Arrow Valley Park was named ‘Tovey Corner' in her honour, and she remains fondly remembered by those who take part in the parkrun.

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• Our round-up covers just a tiny fraction of the inspirational stories found at parkrun every week. We’d love to hear yours, so please keep the conversation going in the comments.

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