Alice Townend, a consultant oncoplastic breast surgeon from Newcastle, has become the first woman to run the entire length of the Tyne and Wear Metro system. She completed the 65-mile challenge on Sunday, crossing the finish line in 21 hours, 55 minutes, and 41 seconds after running the Metro's yellow and green lines.
Raising funds for Women's Street Watch
Alice, from Great Park, has raised more than £5,000 for Women's Street Watch during the challenge. Her inspiration came after running the final stretch with friend Paul McDougal in February, and feeling that it would be unsafe for a woman to do the same thing without overnight support due to safety issues.
The 53-year-old told ChronicleLive: "I couldn't run through the night, and not through a lot of the areas the Metro goes through because it's just not safe. So, I wanted to highlight the issues women face trying to do things like this. That's why I chose to support Women's Street Watch who do an absolutely phenomenal job in our city on Friday and Saturday nights keeping women of Newcastle safe."
Dedicated each station to a special person
Alice said that she had dedicated each station to a special person, and the finish line of Monument was for all of the women that Women's Street Watch had helped to get home safely. But raising money wasn't Alice's only motivation.
She said: "I'm 53, a menopausal woman and lots of people write us off thinking we're a bit past it. I wanted to show that we're not, we have to dream big and be brave enough to start. We don't have to be fast, we don't have to be perfect. We just have to be brave enough to give it a go."
Emotional finish and support
Alice admitted that she had cried when she learned the total of around £5,200 when she crossed the finish line. Since then, that has increased to more than £5,400.
She finished: "I'm really proud and emotional to have completed this run. It was really hard, one of the hardest things I've ever done. I've done long distances before but this was harder. The first day it was really hot and I went through some tough moments early on Sunday morning, but I managed to get through it with the help of my amazing support team. It was an incredible feeling to cross that finish line with all my friends and family there. I'm particularly proud to be the first women to run the Metro marathon."
Lynne Dickinson, station delivery manager at Nexus, said: "Our congratulations go to Alice for completing this epic challenge. It’s an incredible feat of endurance to track both Metro lines in single day. We were delighted to welcome her at the finish line in Newcastle. She is supporting a realty worthwhile cause. She can now take a well-earned rest."
