EDRA x Leeds Marathon

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EDRA x Leeds Marathon
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EDRA saw it's maiden competitive outing at the Leeds Marathon. Leeds local George Ravenhall shares his blow by blow account on what was a truly special day for him, the city, and countless others.

 

Leeds Marathon 2026, what a day.

This was my third marathon of the year, coming hot on the heels of Tokyo and Manchester. The build-up wasn't ideal, but I've been lucky: a good few years of injury-free, consistent training behind me, topped off with a few weeks of more specific hilly running to sharpen up for everything Leeds likes to throw at you.

I've run this race every year since its inception, and this year was different. It was actually going to be cool weather. For a mid-May marathon, that's a godsend. 

On the start line I felt good, but I stuck to the game plan: go out conservatively, then build. With last year's winner lining up too, I knew the win might be a tall order, so the play was to stay patient and see what came.

As expected, it turned into a lonely run, sitting just behind the leader and keeping him in check. Then I decided to roll the dice on the climb out of Otley, surging to bridge across to him. There are some great photos from this bit, me sneaking up on the leader and clawing back nearly a minute over the 2km drag of a climb.

I definitely burnt a few matches getting back on terms, and we traded a few blows coming back into Leeds. So I made the call: drop back, stay patient, and only commit when we were inside the final 5km.

The half marathon runners were out in force, but they started to thin out as I reached Headingley, so that's exactly where I pushed. I made the pass, took the lead, and didn't look back.

The shouts of encouragement were incredible, and catching sight of a few friends on the way to the finish gave me the lift I needed. I crossed the line in 2:26, a time I genuinely didn't think was possible for me on this course.

What's even better, I felt great. I negative split the whole thing and had nothing to deal with afterwards. No chafing. No hotspots. Nothing.

Big thanks to Edra for putting me in the kit pre-release. It gave me the confidence to go and take the W in my hometown marathon.

I finished first across the line on the day, but it’s so much more than a race. The Rob Burrow Leeds marathon is about the community around running and what it brings to our daily lives. I’ll be back again next year and every year I’m able to. It’s such a privilege to be able to run in this event and my aim is to be still on the start line 50 years from now. 

Big congrats to George and everybody who took part!