Southwark woman breaks London Marathon Guinness World Record
A woman from Southwark broke one of the more illustrious records held for the world-famous London Marathon on Sunday.
Sadie Smith, who lives in Canada Water, broke the Guinness World Record for the fastest marathon dressed as a three dimensional body part, running at the TCS London Marathon dressed as a brain cell to raise funds for Parkinson’s UK.
It took Sadie, aged 32, more than 72 hours to make her 3D brain cell costume, which had to hold its own shape, cover at least the length of her shoulders to knees, and closely resemble a brain cell to comply with the record rules.
She also had to complete the marathon in less than 4hrs 30mins. Sadie completed the marathon in 4hrs 26mins and so far has raised £3,000 for the charity to boot.
She said: “It was definitely challenging running the marathon dressed as a brain cell. It was hot, and the costume slowed me down. But I’m so happy I smashed the Guinness World Record.
“Knowing I was raising awareness and funds for such an important cause kept me motivated to keep going.”
There are 145,000 people now living with Parkinson’s in the UK. Sadie’s dad, Graham, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s 18 years ago, and he was the inspiration behind Sadie’s record breaking attempt.
Sadie added: “When people hear the word Parkinson’s, they think of shaking and trembling – what they don’t think of is freezing, stiffness, slowness, memory problems difficulty sleeping, and depression.
“And that’s just from the condition itself. Dad has many more symptoms from his medication. Yes, the medications make his tremor go away, but they cause sudden changes in blood pressure, fainting, obsessive compulsive behaviours, and hallucinations.
“My dad is now in his 70s and is barely able to walk alone or engage in conversation. My mum is an amazing carer and together they navigate this unbearable condition and everything it throws at them, but this is a full-time job with no pay and little respite.
“Parkinson’s UK helps people like my parents to better cope with daily life, but also work tirelessly to find – hopefully one day – a cure.”
To donate to Sadie’s campaign, visit https://tcslondonmarathon.
Pictured top: Sadie with her Guinness World Record certificate (Picture: Sadie Smith)