Last year, my boyfriend suggested that I should run the London marathon, and I laughed. He laughed too, but he laughed too long and too loud. That made me think. I realized that he didn't believe that I could do it. That made me angry,and determined. Now he knows that I can !

　　Training wasn't easy, but I kept going. I didn't need special training but I did need to buy very good shoes. Each day,I went a little further. By the end of three months, I was running five days a week. Sometimes in the evenings I ran 10km;on Sunday mornings, I sometimes ran about 30km.

　　On the day of the race in London, I lined up with about 30,000 other runners. For the first ]0km I felt very happy and my legs felt very comfortable. At the 30km mark, I felt exhausted, and wanted to stop, but I kept on going.

　　By the time I reached the 35km mark, I knew I was going to get to the end of the course. Somehow that confidence made me feel lighter and faster. As I came round the last bend and saw the finishing line, I could see three runners ahead of me. I raced past all of them to finish the race in just under four hours. The winner had completed the race in 2 hours and 10 minutes, but I didn't care! I had run 42km and completed my first marathon !