“It felt like I was running inside an oven”

Friday 27 April 2018

She might have run six already, but this year’s ‘oven-like’ London Marathon proved too much for one local fitness instructor on the day. But she’s not giving up.

Terri Garrido now inviting islanders to join her to finish the race with her in memory of Masterchef semi-finalist Matt Campbell who tragically collapsed and died at the 22.5-mile mark – just 1.5miles ahead of where Terri herself had to call it a day due to the overwhelming heat.

“It was incredibly hot right from the very start which worried me as all of my months of training had been during the coldest part of the year.  When I did my last 20k run just one week before the marathon it was only seven degrees and it was pouring with rain” Terri, who was raising money for Jersey Hospice, told Express.

As someone who runs a gym with her husband and has completed six marathons, Terri is no stranger to running. But the sweltering temperatures at last weekend’s London Marathon, which was the hottest on record at 24.1 degrees, made her fourth appearance at the fundraising event a very different experience.

“The good weather had brought out a lot more spectators than last year, the pavements were crowded and noisy right from the start line. The heat was absolutely incredible, there was no shade or breeze at all, it felt like I was running inside an oven the whole time. I ran underneath every shower and fire brigade water hose but I just dried out in minutes, I don't think I have ever drunk so much water in a race but none of it felt like it was quenching my thirst.”

Pictured: Runners have pledged to finish Matt's race after he tragically died and have donated to his JustGiving page. 

Terri says her race was going well until the 17-mile mark, but the pain from her legs and the noise from the busy crowds started to overwhelm her so she started walking when she reached the 20^th mile in an attempt to reach her husband and friends, who were waiting at the 21st.

“My legs just didn't want to run any more. The minute I started walking I became very dizzy, nauseous and delirious. The crowds were shouting at me to keep running but I started feeling very anxious and knew I had to pull out. I had seen many people lying on the road with paramedics. It is very upsetting and shocking to see this, but all I kept thinking was that will be me if I don't stop soon.  

“I just couldn't take the heat or noise from the spectators anymore. People kept saying to me, 'It's only 5 miles, just walk it!' But that just sounded so far when I wasn't feeling 100%,” said Terri.

Pictured:  Terri Garrido says it was "incredibly hot" as she made her way to the start line of the London Marathon.  

Despite being upset seeing other marathon runners with their finishers t’shirts and medals on the tube back to her hotel, she knew she had made the right decision to stop as she still felt unwell the next day.

The severity of the situation really hit home when Terri heard about the death of Kendal-born Matt Campbell (29), who was running his second marathon in two weeks trying to raise £2,500 for the Cumbria-based Brathay Trust, in memory of his late father. She told Express: “That could have been any of us in that extreme heat.”

After hearing about the #FinishForMatt initiative, where thousands of runners across the UK have pledged to finish the 3.7miles Matt had left to run on the London Memory, Terri and her husband Dan decided to do the same in Jersey.

Pictured: Terri and Dan say they've had a lot of interest by islanders to run 3.7 miles on Sunday as a tribute to Matt Campbell. 

“We thought it would be a fitting tribute if a group of friends, many of which were also running in London, got together and ran these 3.7 miles this Sunday at 11am. (…) What initially started off as a small intimate event has snowballed slightly due to word of mouth and social media,” said Dan.

Dan and Terri have been given the thumbs up by the Department of Infrastructure and St. Helier to hold the event which has attracted a lot of support from islanders. They hope people will join them at the first shelter along Victoria Avenue at West Park at 11:00 on Sunday, to pay tribute to the runner who never got to finish his race.

People can also make a donation via Matt's JustGiving page, which has smashed his £2,500 target and has already reached over £180,000 at the time of writing.