ON SUNDAY, October 16, amateur marathon runner Steve Edwards ran his 750th official marathon race at the tough Maidstone event in Kent.

The 54-year-old crossed the finish line in 3hrs 27min 42sec to win his V50 age category and finish in 5th place overall.

It was Steve’s 672nd marathon inside 3hrs 30min and his 40th competitive marathon so far this year.

Afterwards, the Moreton In Marsh-based runner, who now competes for new Gloucestershire club North Cotswold Tri & Run, commented: “So far, this has been another hard year.

“They certainly don’t get any easier and this was a real toughie with over 2500 feet of climbing.

“Trying to fit in training and racing that amount of marathons around a full-time job really does test you to the limit.

“If you add on the logistical elements like travelling and arranging accommodation for the longer trips, there are days when I’m just so incredibly tired which means motivation can be difficult. Luckily, I have an understanding wife who comes to all my races.

“We are a great team and I know I couldn’t do all this without Teresa’s support.”

Steve’s average finish time for 750 marathons is 3hrs 17min 11sec and has taken 28 years to achieve, an average of one every 13 days since 1988.

Having established landmark records for running 500, 600 and 700 official marathons in the fastest average finish time, his ultimate goal is to try and set a new 1,000 marathons world record by keeping his average finish time inside 3hrs 20min.

That still leaves another 250 endurance racers, a daunting task which Steve readily admits will be incredibly tough especially when he’s not getting any younger and injury becomes an ever-increasing risk.

His targets for 2017 include trying to run a 700th sub 3:30 which would be another world first and setting a new 800 marathons landmark record at the revived Birmingham International marathon.

His biography, The Man Inside The Machine is now available on Amazon, 10 per cent of all proceeds are being donated to local Gloucestershire charity Kate’s Home Nursing.

Known by many in the UK running community as “The Godfather of Marathon Running”, Steve Edwards has determination, stamina and consistency that be- lies his advancing age, and still he’s hungry for more.

Boasting 55 marathon wins, the second-most by any British athlete, Edwards’ achievements are all the more impressive given his 28-year commitment.

And he’s showing no signs of slowing down just yet.