Sophie Raworth
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What inspired Sophie Raworth to start running at 40?
Hello and welcome to The Midpoint. My guest today is an inspiration to me. She's someone who's found a passion, an obsession even, for running and for pushing herself beyond her boundaries and into more challenges than even she thought possible. And most of us could even ever contemplate. And it all began over the age of 40. So over the last 15 years or so, she's completed the Sahara Desert Marathon de Sable, the six major city marathons, and she's run the London Marathon many, many times, lowering her PB so much that she got a call-up to represent England. And all while she pushed on in her day job and her glittering career as one of the BBC's most trusted newsreaders and interviewers. Sophie Raworth is also a mother of three and as her book Running On Air demonstrates so beautifully she's had to manage all of that with the usual mash-up of midlife milestones including the very recent death of her father from Parkinson's disease.
I cried about eight times I think reading her book so hopefully we're going to keep it together today. Let's go meet Sophie. Sophie, it is so wonderful to have you on The Midpoint. I've been hoping you'd come on for quite a while. It's taken a book, which in itself took about six years to write. Eight years.
Eight years from the moment I was asked to write it to actually getting it published. Yeah, that was a long time.
It is a fantastic read. And I've already told you this. It made me cry at least five times and probably well up another three. I was crying within the first chapter.
How did Sophie prepare for the London Marathon after her initial collapse?
And I think part of that is to just do with the marathon itself. The marathons are so emotional. I don't know what it is. Put it into words for me why they do this to us.
I mean, I think the thing for me is the I love the marathon distance because you cannot cut corners and you have to do the work. And it is a lot of work. It's at least four months of proper training. And, you know, you stand on, I love it because you're always there on the finish line of the London Marathon. And you see those people coming across and the sort of tears and the joy and they've all worked so hard for so long and they get there. But it's also the community spirit, the people out there, the causes people are running for. And, you know, people now, they run, you don't have to be an elite runner to do it. There are people who are walking it, but they're all doing it So many people are doing it for causes that are so close to their heart, for people, for family, for charities.
And they're raising huge amounts of money. And it means so much to people. And also now, I mean, it's such a privilege to be able to run it because so many people, I think it was 1.3 million people applied for the ballot this year for 60,000 places.
Wow. Or it could be double that. We don't know, do we? We don't know yet whether it's going to be over two days.
What lessons about resilience does Sophie share from her marathon experiences?
But taking your story right back to the beginning of, and I should just say, Sophie, obviously, and I've said this in your introduction, you're a broadcaster, right? I'm talking to you like running is what you're famous for. But I think you're almost as famous for running as you are being one of the nation's favourite and most trusted newsreaders, which must be a strange feeling when you walk down the street. Are they saying hello to me because... I'm a runner? Or because I'm Sophie the Newsreader?
It's funny, I think running makes me much more accessible to people. I talk to people all the time. Running is the most levelling sport, and I love it for that. It really doesn't matter who you are, where you come from, what you do. And the people I meet through running... Rarely talk to me, actually, about my job. I'm not treated differently at all, and I really love it for that. But, I mean, I didn't start running until I was in my 40s, really. I mean, I did two half marathons when I was 38 and 39. Then I got pregnant and had my third child. And I did nothing until I was sort of 41. And before that, people always think I was like really sporty when I was young. I wasn't at all.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What inspired Sophie Raworth to start running at 40?
0:04–1:27
2
How did Sophie prepare for the London Marathon after her initial collapse?
1:27–2:42
3
What lessons about resilience does Sophie share from her marathon experiences?
2:42–3:44
4
How has running impacted Sophie's personal and professional life?
3:44–4:31
5
What advice does Sophie give for starting running later in life?
4:31–5:54
6
How does Sophie balance running with her career and family responsibilities?
5:54–6:46
7
What role does community play in Sophie's running journey?
6:46–8:11
8
How has Sophie's perspective on aging and fitness evolved through running?
8:11–47:03