London Marathon 2009

Jesus the Marathon was too hot and very tough going. On the London Marathon website they claim it was "the hottest conditions ever experienced in the 26-year history of the race."
I struggled at 16 miles, the heat was just too much. I was easily on target for my aim of a 3:45 finish, but I really had to knock that on the head, drop the pace as I felt I would get into big trouble in the next few miles. Miles 16-20 was tough going, I felt empty, sick and incredibly hot. I ended up coming in at a comfortable pace at 4:15.
Very frustrating that after four hard months training that the weather impacted so much as training went really well and I knew I could have done a 3:45.Apparently 750 people failed to finish with 350 taken to hospital. Unbelievable number of people collapsed on the side of the road.

I'm hanging up my 'Marathon trainers' now, I trained so hard for today over the past 4/5 months but the heat just zapped me mentally and physically so just finishing it became the achievement.

On the positive, it seems I've caught the sun!

London Marathon Update

Five weeks to go and the latest issue of "Marathon News" has just arrived. This edition contains full details on every aspect of the race day and gives me my registration sheet with notification of my race number - 22923.

For the first time, I'm starting to cack it slightly.

Sussex Beacon (Brighton) Half Marathon

Those that have been following my progress on Twitter will be well aware of my impending participation in the London Marathon this coming April. My ability to sprint is in no doubt following a turbulent 'yoof', running from the Rozzers in the ghetto's of West London.

The training has been going better then expected, today was the Sussex Beacon Half Marathon in Brighton and a chance to assess how the preparation is really going.
I have a bit of a habit of storming off at the start of races so today I got eye strain looking at my Garmin to ensure I religiously stick to 5 minute kilometres for the entire race.

I finish bang on my target of 1 hour, 45 minutes and pretty much a constant pace throughout, though the nasty hills at mile 8 and 11 made the final couple of miles a bit of an effort. Total distance was 21.38kms.

Two photo's I was unaware were taken and probably sums up my post race thoughts immediately after crossing the line....

Rageh Omaar in Iran

Rageh Omaar embarks on a unique journey inside what he describes as one of the most misunderstood countries in the world, looking at the country through the eyes of people rarely heard - ordinary Iranians.

It took a year of wrangling to get permission to film inside Iran but the result is an amazing portrayal of an energetic and vibrant country that is completely different to the usual images seen in the media.

Featured on BBC3, below is the full documentary split into 10 minute segments for easy viewing.

Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 1/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 2/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 3/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 4/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 5/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 6/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 7/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 8/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 9/10


Rageh Omaar, Inside Iran - Part 10/10

The Real Slumdog Millionaire!

With 'Slumdog Millionaire' headlining the news this week with its Oscar nominations, a wonderful feature was on Sky News this week when reporter Alex Crawford interviewed a real 'Slumdog Millionaire' - when a Rickshaw driver from Mumbai actually won one million rupees on the Indian version of 'Who wants to be a Millionaire'.

Around the World in 80 Faiths - Episode Three

The third episode - Part 3/8 - Africa
Pete Owen Jones continues his year long religious odyssey with a gruelling journey exploring the spiritual traditions of Africa. Pete sets off hoping to get a glimpse of man's first experience of the divine. His journey begins with the ancient practice of Voodoo in Benin, where Pete is confronted by ritual practices that contradict his own deeply held religious convictions. He is forced to decide whether he should even take part.

In the continent where all human life began, he travels to Botswana to meet the San Bushmen, inheritors of the earliest religious faith on earth. In South Africa he discovers surprising new developments in religious belief when he meets the members of the 12th Apostolic Church and is stunned to find Afrikaners who believe the world is about to come to an end. In Ethiopia he finds a group of one of the worlds youngest religions - Rastafarians who have set up a Utopian community in this harsh and unforgiving land.

It is a six-part series is on BBC Two, Tuesday's at 9pm.
In case you missed the third episode, you can watch it below, split into ten minute segments for easy viewing. Episodes one and two are also on my blog in case you've missed the series so far.

Around the World in 80 Faiths - Episode Three - Part 1/6


Around the World in 80 Faiths - Episode Three - Part 2/6


Around the World in 80 Faiths - Episode Three - Part 3/6


Around the World in 80 Faiths - Episode Three - Part 4/6


Around the World in 80 Faiths - Episode Three - Part 5/6


Around the World in 80 Faiths - Episode Three - Part 6/6