Where there’s a will, there’s a Way – Tom Kerry
August 1, 2014
A unique but truly inspiring story, not surprisingly, hit the headlines this week. Steve Way became front page news after finishing 10th in the Commonwealth Games marathon. A fine performance in its own right but not one which would normally receive the coverage it did. What grabbed everyone’s attention was that just seven years ago, Steve was a self confessed boozer, smoker and lover of kebabs who weighed 16 and half stone – not the traditional lifestyle raw material of an elite marathon runner!
Steve Way must be blessed with great genetic raw materials for long distance running because having decided to take up running in an attempt to make some changes in his life, he ran the London Marathon in a little over three hours on just three weeks training, a very impressive feat in itself. The serious training then started and Steve’s performance in the 2014 London Marathon gained him selection for England and a Commonwealth Games performance we’ve now all heard about.
Of course only a very small minority of people are ever going to achieve the feats and the rise to fame that Steve Way has, but running (the most simplistic of sports) has the power to completely change lives and allow the everyday person to achieve goals that they often think are beyond them. The stories of the journeys taken to achieve these goals are every bit as powerful as Steve’s and any other Commonwealth Games athlete.
Events like London 2012 and the Commonwealth Games with the unprecedented levels of media coverage they attract, certainly highlight the human endeavour, the personal journeys and the enormous potential and attraction of sport. However, for the vast majority of athletes, sport goes beyond TV coverage, gold medals and glory – when sport becomes intimate, it’s about an individual and whatever that person’s goal is. The ever increasing numbers of people with the will to get involved in sport has led to an explosion in the number of organised events for people to take part in. These events meet their level of competitiveness and present them with clear challenges and goals to aim for and work towards.
These growing number of events bring with them huge new opportunities. The numbers of people getting involved in mass participation events are now significant and extend well beyond just the athletes to include friends and family. Organisers and sponsors are able to develop closer links with competitors and can tap into the emotional engagement of those who are so committed and passionate about what they are doing. Steve Way’s achievement rightly hit the headlines but there are tens of thousands of individuals who have also got up off the sofa, trained hard and committed themselves to a sport, surpassed their expectations and achieved their own personal goals.
Tom Kerry is the Events Director of Limelight Sports.
Tom joined Limelight Sports in 1999 initially working on mass participation multisport events for young people. He is now Events Director with responsibility for a team of over 20 people creating and delivering premium participation sporting experiences.
Tom’s 
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