Mansfield Harriers complete virtual London Marathon

Due to the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic however, this year the streets of the capital remained eerily quiet.

But for three athletes from Mansfield Harriers however, this was not going to prevent them utilising their hard work over the winter, as they prepared for the Watopia Marathon on the popular online platform Zwift.

Along with 165 athletes from around the world, Shaun Middleton, Clive Buck and Adam Fairfield put their fitness and mental fortitude to the ultimate test, as they attempted to cover the 26.2 mile distance on their treadmills, in their homes, whilst raising money for the NHS.

With no crowds, no finisher medals, and their sofas just metres away, it was no surprise the race had a dropout rate of 38 per cent, with just 99 athletes finishing the race.

Amongst those finishers were the three Mansfield boys. First home for the Blue & Green army was Fairfield in 2:58:46 (23rd) followed by Buck in 3:21:53 (38th) and Middleton 3:36:59 (52nd).

Where Fairfield and Buck are seasoned marathon runners, with nearly twenty finishes between them, for Middleton this was his first time over the distance.

He did not have the support of thousands of cheering fans and the euphoria of his first (real world) finish line.

He was on a treadmill, in his garage, watching a virtual version of himself pound the virtual streets of Watopia (Zwift’s virtual eutopia).