A fun-loving fitness fanatic is setting her sights on a quirky world record by running the fastest marathon by someone dressed as a videogame character.
Teacher Alison Stewart will be going for glory in the guise of Chun-Li, from 90s hit Street Fighter, when she pounds the streets of London on 21st April.
The 44-year-old needs to beat the previous-best time of three hours and 56 minutes and is raising funds for East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH).
She previously ran for EACH at the 2019 London Marathon – in the process setting a record for the fastest runner dressed as a fairytale character.
“I must be mad but love a fun, quirky challenge,” said Alison, who teaches at The Perse Upper School, in Cambridge.
“My 12-year-old daughter, Eleanor, is the inspiration because she loves the Guinness Book of Records.
“She was nine when I set my last one, which was all her idea, and very disappointed when it was broken last year.
“She asked if I could try for another one – so here goes!
“This time, I’ve chosen to attempt the fastest marathon by someone dressed as a videogame character as my daughter and stepchildren love gaming. I’m constantly telling them to turn it off!
“It was a tossup between Lara Croft, from Tomb Raider, Princess Peach, from Super Mario, or Chun-Li.
“I decided to go for the latter as I wanted a strong female character and think the outfit is great.
“She wears a blue qipao, which is an early 20th Century Chinese dress. Hopefully it’s less restrictive than the other two, although keeping my hairstyle in place could be interesting.”
In order to secure her place at London, Alison needed to achieve a ‘good for age’ qualifying time so signed up for a marathon in Longford, Ireland, last August. She needed to clock 3h 50m but managed 3h 30m.
“Now it’s game on and I’m looking forward to raising as much as I can for EACH,” added Alison, who lives in Over, ten miles outside Cambridge and Huntingdon.
“It was the obvious charity to support again and I was fortunate enough to be given a tour of Milton after my marathon in 2019.
“The work it does is amazing and inspiring and I hope every donation helps.”
This will be Alison’s tenth marathon and, by coincidence, she was one of three Snow White characters in 2019.
Initially, she was told she had missed out on the record – only to get a phone call on the journey home to say there had been a mistake.
“I was shattered but elated,” said Alison.
“I couldn’t believe it when I turned up and saw the other runners dressed as Snow White. We had to race each other and I remember shouting to the crowd ‘have you seen any other Snow Whites?’
“To set the record, you have to cross the line looking exactly as you started.
“I have to sign-in early, there are ‘spotters’ among the crowd and it’s all extremely strict. You can’t bend any rules.
“I’m horribly nervous but it’s all good fun and I love running. I’ve started doing it with some of the students at school.
“It’s so easy and accessible and I see such a change in them when they’ve spent time outside. Hopefully what I’m doing inspires them in some way.”
As part of her preparation, Alison ran the Cambridge Half-Marathon dressed as Chun-Li on Sunday (3rd March).
To show your support and sponsor her, head here.
EACH Community Fundraiser Helena Davis said: “What a wonderful and amazing challenge to take on.
“Alison has my complete respect and we’ll be rooting for her and cheering from afar on 21st April.”
