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Marathon Talk Episode 16: Anthony Butler & Jessie Rix


The TCS London Marathon had it all - world records, a new course record, a sprint finish, and a remarkable new Six Star Finisher in Anthony Butler.

The visually-impaired runner completed the race alongside Jessie Rix, his partner in both running and marriage, a story which we hear more of as they join us for this week’s Marathon Talk!

Tune in to hear all about last week’s guests’ emotional race, Sifan Hassan’s unorthodox journey to finishing ahead of one of the best ever women’s fields, Marcel Hug’s wheelchair domination, and much more…

In this episode of Marathon Talk

  • 0:00 - We catch up on the emotional London story of last week’s guests, Sam & Chrissie
  • 7:35 - Covering an eventful London Marathon with a look at Sifan Hassan’s bizarre winning performance, Kelvin Kiptum’s course record and 45 Guinness World Records
  • 35:00 - A heartwarming conversation of romance and racing with visually-impaired Six-Star Finisher Anthony Butler and his wife & guide, Jessie Rix

Listen links:
Apple
Spotify
Google
Amazon

Episode keywords
Marathon talk, abbott world marathon majors, marathon running, distance running, endurance marathon, marathon training, endurance training, london marathon, six star finisher, tcs london marathon 2023, sifan hassan, kelvin kiptum, anthony butler, jessie rix, visually impaired marathon

Episode highlights

“Kelvin Kiptum is so young. He's only 23 years old. So it is going to be insane to watch his career. He's that confident, quiet runner who just kind of shows up and gets the job done.” - 8:00 - Deena Kastor 

“In the race, Sifan Hassan stopped twice to stretch out her hip. She dropped 28 seconds behind the leaders. She had a nightmare at a drink station. Then she went on to win in 2:18:33, beating some of the one of the greatest women's fields ever assembled.” - 11:20 - Martin Yelling

“Out of 71 attempts, 45 Guinness World Record titles were broken at this year's London Marathon and everything from the fastest marathon with two runners handcuffed together, to the fastest marathon wearing clogs. ” - 25:00 - Deena Kastor

“Have a definite period of transition. A month is great, and certainly with some of that initial period perhaps you don't have no running at all, but I define it as no focused running.” - 31:05 - Martin Yelling

“I tell Anthony all the time, I just love that she's gonna grow up knowing her dad did this. Her mom and dad did this, but her dad got his six star, and she was there on that journey with us.” - 40:55 - Jessie Rix

“I can't just go be a barista at Starbucks or work at McDonald's, I can't do that, because of my vision. I needed to find a life for myself, I needed to find my own identity.” - 45:15 - Anthony Butler

“If I'm training for a marathon with someone, I'm spending 30-40 hours a week with this person. It's like a full time job, right? You get to really know these people, you become like best friends. Next thing you know, you go to birthday parties, their weddings; There's so many great relationships that form, not only intimate, but it's really strong friendships.” - 50:30 - Anthony Butler 

Visit the full back catalogue of shows here.

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