The Man Who Ran Around The World -#MyGivingStory - John Peach

Jasmine Tsunoda
5月1日
読了時間: 5分

Ever wondered what it is like to run in marathons all across the globe? John Peach, a UK native, has been running in various marathons around the world for over ten years! We here at Giving Tuesday Japan got the exclusive opportunity to interview him about his experience applying and running in the Tokyo 2025 Marathon, how charity led him to Japan, and what his goals for the future are.

Take a look at the My Giving Story interview between John and our Global Community Team Leader, Jasmine, below!

Jasmine: Hi John! Thank you so much for taking the time to answer all of our questions and sending us photos from your trip to Tokyo for the Marathon! Could you please introduce yourself, including your background, where you're from, and what you do? Additionally, please share your family's charitable background, including how you give back, why you give back, and any ways you'd like to encourage others to do so.

John: Sure! Hello everyone. I'm John Peach - I live with my wife Kerry (who works for Mobell)- in the countryside 20 miles north of Birmingham in the centre of England. I have worked in the real estate business all of my career and currently work for a company that owns and operates over 4000 pubs- somebody has to! My role is to raise money by selling surplus land!

Jasmine: WOW! That's amazing!

John: Around 30 years ago, a friend (whom I knew from school) told me her daughter ( Emma- who was 3 at that time) had been diagnosed with Battens Disease- a life-limiting rare genetic illness with no cure, where affected children usually die in their early teens. It was awful to see how this beautiful little girl (Emma) slowly deteriorated and how hard it was on her parents. Emma died just before her 13th Birthday.

There is still no cure, but the Batten's Disease Family Association (BDFA) supports families and funds research searching for a cure to this awful illness. I had been doing some short runs around our neighbourhood to try to lose weight and decided that if I could ever get a place in the London Marathon, I would raise cash for this charity as I wanted to show support and do something positive.

Jasmine: That sounds like an amazing cause and an even more amazing reason to start running. How long have you been running in marathons? What was the first marathon that you ran in?

https://www.londonmarathonevents.co.uk/london-marathon

John: I began running around our local streets as I was 30 and either sitting behind a desk or behind a steering wheel for long hours and began putting weight on. London Marathon is known as the biggest global fundraising event, with many running in crazy costumes, and I applied each year and finally got a place after the sixth attempt.

My first Marathon was actually a very small one (only a few thousand people) around the countryside near Chester, whilst I was waiting for a London place! Chester is a historic city founded by the Romans in North-west England. That gave me confidence that I could actually run the distance and raise some money!

Jasmine: Amazing! That is some dedication! How many marathons have you run in total? What was the first country you travelled to to participate in a marathon?

John: Tokyo was my 12th Marathon! Strictly speaking it was Wales that was my first "international" run...as the Chester Marathon began on a horse racing course in England, crosses into Wales, and then finished back on the horse racing course! My first foreign Marathon was New York- the biggest in the world over 50,000 runners!

Jasmine: That's a lot of people and a LOT of marathons! Which organizations/businesses, or how many in total, have you run for/partnered with/donated to for a marathon?

John: Before the Tokyo Marathon, I had always run for BDFA. The Tokyo Marathon is super difficult and expensive to gain a place for, and only has around 25 charity partners. I ran for Ronald McDonald Children's House as I worked for McDonald's property team years ago and saw the massive difference their houses made, which are always close to hospitals and keep sick children and their families together at very difficult times.

Jasmine: How was the Tokyo Marathon? Was this your first time running it? How does it compare to the other marathons you have been to in the past? Would you ever run it again?

John: Yes it was my first time running in Tokyo! Where do I start?...well I nearly didn't run it! I caught the wrong train (which was going in the wrong direction!) and I ended up running as fast as I could for 1.5 miles to get to the security area (10 minutes later than the closing time)! Fortunately, the security people were very kind and let me in, but I was stressed, exhausted, and steaming hot! Despite it being so early in March, I got a sun tan - it just got warmer and sunnier throughout the day!

Even though I finished the race over half an hour slower than my previous Marathon it was still a great day - made all the better by having a beer in the sunshine opposite Tokyo Station with Kerry and some of her work colleagues- Irish Italian Vietnamese Japanese, and we got talking to some Australians who had been skiing in the Japanese Alps! It made me realise just how amazing and how small our planet is, and what a privilege to be able to visit Japan and run.

But compared to other marathons, Tokyo is definitely the best organised and cleanest! We had to collect our Bib number from The Expo building - Big Sound Halls in Tokyo waterfront- what was an amazing building - and a great indication of how well organised and friendly the people of Tokyo have been to us!

Jasmine: Would you ever run it again?

John: Yes ..absolutely- in a heartbeat! I would love to run again! I loved the support - so many smiling/ clapping supporters along the entire route- and finishing opposite the Imperial Palace was very memorable!

Jasmine: Which country/countries have you been to more than once? Which has been your favourite?

John: I have run London and Chester twice and have Manchester again in a few weeks' time! (April 2025) But my favorite has to be London for the amazing charity runners' costumes (e.g. people carrying refrigerators, or dresses as Big Ben), and New York for the noise- and huge crowds...though Tokyo is also fantastic for crowd support all along the route and its amazing organisation!

Jasmine: Haha. Sounds like it is difficult to choose! Which (country or marathon) have you NOT been to that you would like to go to in the future?

https://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon

John: I'd love to run fast enough to gain a place in the Boston Marathon, as it's the first of the 'Modern Era'. Kerry is encouraging me to enter the Marathon de Medoc...you run through the vineyards in South-West France...with Cheese and wine stops every mile!

Jasmine: Have you heard of or participated in Giving Tuesday before coming to Japan? Is there anything you would like to do in the future in collaboration with Giving Tuesday?

John: No, I'd not heard of it before, and I thought to myself, why Tuesday?! But now that I know more, I'm happy to spread the word about Giving Tuesday whenever possible, so definitely, of course.

Jasmine: John! Thank you so much for sharing your inspiring story with us! Next time you are in Japan/Tokyo Marathon, please let us know! We can't wait to see what you do next!