Bristol Rovers’ Retail and Ticketing Manager Pete Weymouth completed the London Marathon last Sunday to raise money and awareness for Bone Cancer Research Trust.
He finished the marathon in under six hours, raising over £2,500 for the charity. They are dedicated to battling primary bone cancer and are on a mission to make a difference through information, research, awareness and support.
You can still donate to his page by clicking here!
Pete had been training hard to get into shape for the run and was inspired by Nick Anderton, who beat bone cancer.
“I’ve always wanted to do a marathon,” he said. “It’s been one of my goals, and if I was going to do it, I wanted to do it for a good cause. I was supposed to run it in 2024 for Bone Cancer Research Trust and raise funds for them because of Nick Anderton, who was one of our players who sadly had to retire in 2023.
“He had osteosarcoma in his knee. So, it meant that he had to retire. I entered in 2024 and couldn’t do. I started training again in October with the aim of raising as much money as possible.”
“I was the best part of 20 stone then. So, I had to do something, and I thought I didn’t want to let myself down or the charity or Nick because I was running for them ultimately. I am now 15 stone, which is mad.”
Pete’s change in lifestyle certainly helped him prepare for the London Marathon, but the prospect of running for 26.2 miles in the hot weather is still daunting. It was a busy week for him that had plenty of challenges along the way, but he was delighted to get over the line.
“I got the number on the Friday, and I still had two days,” he stated. “I was up there for the whole weekend. I did a couple of different things to try and take my mind off of it. I went and watched another game on the Saturday, and I think it was the Sunday morning when I woke up, I was like, ‘I’ve got to run 26 miles now’.
“I was nervous. There was a point where I wasn’t going to do it. Mentally, that was one of my weak points, so that was a big thing for me to overcome on the Sunday morning. I’m sitting here chatting to you now, and I’ve done it.
“To be honest with you, for the first part of it, it wasn’t too bad, which sounds really weird. The first 13 miles were quite easy, and then systematically, from mile 14 to mile 20, bits of my body started giving up. I got to the 20th mile, and I walked most of it from 20 miles onwards. But I got it done, so that’s the main thing.
“People know that I’m quite open about mental health and the struggles. I think that was the biggest challenge because you can train for years, but on the day, you have to be on it mentally, or you’re just not going to do it. Chatting to you now, I still don’t know how I did it, to be honest. I was trying to count the miles down, which is right or wrong, I don’t know. I didn’t even know what time of day it was. The people talking about the heat, I don’t have a clue.”
Pete was greeted with a medal at the end of his mammoth marathon effort, with his smile beaming from ear to ear while representing the Gas in the famous blue-and-white quarters. He confessed that it was an ‘unbelievable feeling’, with staff and players at Rovers tracking his progress during the day.
“To be honest with you, it still hasn’t sunk in,” said Pete. “It was a mad day and after I got over the finish line, it all went really quickly because a lot of colleagues at work and people as I was going around were messaging me and encouraging me to get it done. When I got over the finish line, I didn't realise how many people within the club and outside of the club were tracking my progress. As soon as I went over the finish line, my phone just went off, which was really nice, and it was a nice feeling at the end.
“That was the best bit [the medal], I think. It was really cool. It’s a massive achievement. On the day, I couldn’t see myself doing it, and to get it done is just an unbelievable feeling.”
Players such as Scott Sinclair and Connor Taylor donated to Pete’s fundraiser, with staff across the club also pledging money for a great cause. Pete was delighted to see the Rovers family come together and also received a heartfelt message from a Gashead.
“It means a lot to be fair,” he said. “Players donating and supporters as well. They wanted to support me and the charity as well because it is an important charity. They do some really good work, and Nick knows about that firsthand. I had a message as well yesterday after I finished from a lady whose husband was being treated at the same time as Nick and unfortunately, he passed away in 2023. She thanked me for doing it and thanked me on behalf of the family.
"The pain I am in now from doing it makes it all worthwhile. That was a very touching message to receive. I had to be in pain for 26 miles with my body, but Nick had to battle a lot more than that for a number of years. So, if Nick had the mental resilience and toughness to battle through that, I had no excuse to even walk for 26 miles. That did help.”
After the London Marathon, what’s next for Pete?
“I have already put myself down for a charity place for next year,” he smiled. “I did that yesterday. So, providing I get it, I will run for Mind, the mental health charity, because that’s something I have personally struggled with, and I will try to help people who have gone through the same stuff as me and get support.”
