Mother of four shares how she got into running, overcoming challenges and her best advice for others over 26.2 miles
It was in Osaka in 1985 that Joyce Smith, just after her 47th birthday, clocked 2:38:09 to become the oldest British woman ever to run a marathon under 2:40.
A two-time Olympian and two-time London Marathon winner, she was no stranger to competing over 26.2 miles.At the London Marathon in 1982, Smith set a British record of 2:29:57, which stood until Sarah Rowell clocked 2:28 over the same course in 1985. 06:00
But while she held that national record for three years, one piece of sub-2:40 history has stayed in Smith’s hands for considerably longer.
“I was pretty emotional running to the finish line,” Braham told AW, whose time was four off his personal best of 2:35:20, which he set in Florence 16 years ago.
“I hadn’t had a good summer of training so I was pretty excited to go under 2:40 even though my watch was 2:40:12 and I was like ‘oh damn’ so it was a big surprise. when I got a text after that saying I’d run 2:39:42.
Braham’s preparation for the race in the German capital was far from ideal. After spending time with his parents, he tore his hip during a hill session, he says. “Then I put my foot down over the fence to stretch and tear my hamstring even more.”
Alice Braham (right) (athlete)
After six weeks of recovery, Braham’s other knee flared up at the London Marathon, where he had fully recovered. it took four weeks to heal.
By the time Berlin rolled around, however, she had a clean bill of health and a run in the German capital, especially in light of how her year had gone so far, had the mother-of-four wondering what might be possible now.
He believes that beating his 2008 personal best is possible and, with that in mind, has already signed up for the famously fast Valencia Marathon on December 1 (at the time of writing, the event will still go ahead after flooding the area).
“I think I have a natural ability to persevere, but also a mindset to keep going,” says Braham. “The mental and the physical are intrinsically linked; if you start to feel hoarse, it’s so easy to slow down or stop. But you have to push the negative thoughts aside and distract yourself with positive thoughts; dangle yourself a carrot.
“I divide things mathematically. I will think. “It’s four-fifths.” And then I break it down further and think. “Seven-eighths. Then maybe I’ll have friends waiting at mile 21, so I’ll have to look strong or I’ll focus on the water station at mile 23.”
Braham, who trains with the Ealing Eagles, makes it a point to know what’s right for both mind and body.To mitigate injuries and prepare for races, he focuses heavily on strength and conditioning and will work on top of his Pilates once a week. on glutes, hamstrings, quads, and core strengthening.His weekly mileage totals about 55, but that’s with his club track training is what he enjoys most.
Alice Braham wins the Ealing Half
“Some of the track sessions can be pretty intense,” he tells AW. “For example, there would be two sets of 1,600m, 800m and 400m. So that’s 8km plus a four-mile run to the track and with. It’s hard, but you’re with other people, which stimulates you.”
Braham sometimes has to miss a long club run at 9.30am on a Sunday because his kids play rugby, but he does that 22-mile midweek run instead.
This dedication should come as no surprise given that she spent most of her teenage years competing at the highest level and was even earmarked for the Sydney Olympics.
After comfortably winning events at high school, Braham was spotted by his PE teacher, who recommended he join the athletics club, which led him to Parkside (now Harrow AC), where he worked under legendary coach Bob Parker.
“He was a grandfatherly figure,” says Braham. “On Thursday nights he would invite everyone around his house to do road reports, and then we’d come back to his place for tea and biscuits.
“He also did a training camp in Portugal every year. It was like a holiday, but we had a good social scene. Bob gave it his all.”
Dave Bedford and Bob Parker (Mark Shearman)
Braham also thanks Andrea Whitcomb and Alison Wyatt, who both won Commonwealth long-distance medals and represented Great Britain at the Olympics, for advice on and off the track.
Braham quickly rose through the ranks to become the English Schools’ 3000m champion in 1994. The following year he represented Great Britain at the European Junior Championships, finishing seventh in the 3000m in Nyregihaza, Hungary.
“The opportunities we were given were amazing,” she adds.
The Olympic dream never materialized, but this is not a story of sporting heartbreak. Braham later studied languages at Edinburgh University and eventually focused on other interests outside of running. Looking back, he has no regrets about the lifestyle choice.
Alice Braham in Verona
“Students are really keeping fit now, and running is a big thing,” she says.
“But then I felt that I had to justify my love for running. My friends said: “Running is so boring” and “you don’t have to lose weight” but I didn’t find it boring and I didn’t run to stay thin.
“But I’ve met a lot of British women runners whose motivation for running was weight. I’ve gone on trips with girls who suffered from anorexia and bulimia, and they’d go out for secret international runs at 4am. It was hard to witness being and was something that put me off the sport.
“There’s a big cultural difference between that era and now. I wonder if I could have gone to Sydney if there was a much more positive attitude towards running like you have today.”
After leaving the elite running scene and graduating from university, Braham decided to run the London Marathon in 2000 to raise money for Whizz-Kidz.Despite a predicted time of 4:30, he clocked 3:08 and qualified for the championship the following year.
Alice Braham in the London Marathon (athlete)
She returned to London in 2005 and finished 27th fastest woman overall, running 2:45:06. top 10
After just a few months, however, his life changed forever. In the horrific attack, Braham’s sister Lucy was found stabbed to death at her parents’ home in Harrow-on-the-Hill and the incident made national news.
“There were times when I couldn’t go out for a run because there were reporters outside our house,” Braham tells AW. “I just wanted to get away. which I need to do for my mental health. It’s always been my sanctuary and the place I’ve gone when things have been difficult in my life.”
When she returned to marathon running in 2007, left leg and hip pain forced Braham to drop out of London with 20 miles to go, before later that year in Toronto in 2:41:07 after breaking down at the 24-mile mark , what happened away from the run.
However, it didn’t take long for Braham to break the 2:40 barrier, running a PB of 2:35:20.
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“I don’t feel my age,” he says. “Oh, I’m getting close to 50” can hold you back. I’m definitely young at heart.
“You know, I only recently discovered the parks. It’s on everyone’s doorstep. I used it as a secret tempo session.
“I parkrun once, have a short chat with people, then run the course again 10 minutes later. So I’ve done two 5km runs at a decent pace.”
One variable that made a huge difference was the shoes.
“The biggest difference is in the recovery,” adds Braham. “It gives your feet more of a break. They don’t feel the hammer after a marathon, and I’m actually ready to go for another run a few days later.
“I’m waiting for the pieces of my body to start falling off, but until then I’m going to go for it. I have this little pressure on myself now because I want to leave a legacy and I’ve got a year and a half left in this age group.
“Others tell me I have to look forward to the very last position and flying in the next age group. It’s exciting and I don’t quite know what’s going to happen.”
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