Maidenhead resident Amelia completes Abbott World Marathon Majors

A 60-year-old woman from Maidenhead who completed the Abbott World Marathon Majors earlier this year says she is extremely proud but doesn’t have plans to hang up her running shoes just yet.

The Abbott World Marathon Majors is a series consisting of the largest and most high-profile marathons in the world – New York, Chicago, Berlin, London, Boston, and Tokyo.

Amelia Power, of The Farthingales, completed the series in Tokyo on March 5 – just over a week before her 60th birthday – and recorded her best time of 4:44:16.

Amelia’s journey started in Berlin in 2018 where she finished in a respectable 5:14:10. New York followed in 2019 where she ran an improved time of 5:05:12.

Next was the London Marathon in 2021 where Amelia finished with a superb 4:46:57 before she recorded 4:51:38 and 4:54:38 in Boston and Chicago respectively in 2022.

Speaking to the Advertiser, Amelia said: “What I have truly learnt over the last couple of years is that absolutely anybody can run a marathon.

“I was a complete novice runner in 2018 and I didn’t even know what the Abbott World Marathon Majors were.

“I was reasonably fit at the time but I certainly wasn’t a distance runner of any description. It was just one of those things where I thought: ‘One day, before I die, maybe I can have a crack at a marathon’.

“I started my journey in Berlin because it looked like the best first marathon to do. I’ll be honest, I had no clue what I was doing on the day – it was just a case of keeping going and hoping for the best.

“Although it was torture, I got over the line and I thought maybe I’d give another one a go not long afterwards.

“I did New York in 2019 and it was electric, the best marathon I’ve run. We were over in Staten Island and they played the American national anthem which got everyone going.

“The atmosphere was just incredible the entire way and the crowds got me through that day.

“Unfortunately I was supposed to be running Dublin later this year but I have an injury.

“However, word on the street is that there will be a seventh major in 2025. It will be held in either Sydney or Cape Town and I think it is only right for me to have a crack at that.”