Anyone who has ever run a marathon knows this: the event requires a certain amount of courage, whether we like it or not, as it forces the body and mind to draw from the depths of their reserves and even far beyond. It’s a statement often heard: the marathon is, depending on the person and opinions, 70% or 80% physical, and the rest mental. Some even speak of disconnecting from reality, of unknown strength, of the irrational. The muscles and the brain would respond, in the final kilometers, to nothing other than an almost mystical energy whose only purpose is to make us reach that distant and desired finish line.

Leodhais Macpherson, a young Englishman from Tynemouth, a town in the northeast of England, did it one day. Then, the next day, he did it again. And the day after, he laced up his sneakers and swallowed, once again, 42.195 kilometers. And so on, for 128 days. Behind this, not a bet, but a vibrant tribute to his brother, Conor, who ended his life in 2018, off the coast of Tynemouth. Despite the efforts of the sea rescuers, his body was never found.

Because his brother’s dream was to live in New York, Leodhais imagined joining the Big Apple from Newcastle by running. Along the way in his mind, the idea turned into 128 marathons (the distance between the two cities) in 128 days.

When I discovered his story, a thousand questions rushed through my mind. From the most naive to the most intimate. So I contacted Leodhais, and to my greatest joy, he did not take 128 days, nor even 128 seconds, to agree to answer my questions and be the first subject of Dernier Relais.

Dernier Relais: Hi Leodhais! Having run a few marathons myself, I remember the physical state I was in the days that followed. So, you won’t be surprised if my first question is simply: After 128 marathons in 128 days, how do you feel?

Leodhais Macpherson: I feel « okay. » The challenge ended two weeks ago and I took some time to relax and recover. I still kept running, on runs of 5 to 10 km. My body is a bit sore, a bit slow, and not very cooperative when I go out running, but despite everything, I am gradually returning to a good shape.

DR: We know marathon preparation, but what about when you’re about to run one every day for more than 4 months?

LM: Hmm… I have been running since I was 10, so you could say I have run all my life, and I have a kind of predisposition for this sport. Nevertheless, I did increase my weekly mileage, reaching on average 160 km. I also did sort of double marathons during the weekends before to prepare my body.

DR: The accomplishment is exceptional, both physically and mentally, and is a magnificent tribute to your brother. When did the idea come to you, and how much time elapsed between the idea and its realization?

LM: I think the idea came to me in September last year. That said, I had some races scheduled in October and November, so I decided to wait until those races were “out of the way” and then decide whether to launch myself or not. I would say I really made the decision at the end of November, which left me 8-10 weeks to get used to the idea and prepare myself. So actually, not much time.

“Giving up was never an option.”

DR: While preparing this article, I noticed you didn’t stop working during the challenge. Practically, how did it go? Did you have to adjust your hours to make the challenge possible? Was your employer aware and supportive?

LM: Yes, indeed, I work full-time for EDF, Monday to Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. That has always been my schedule and I always made sure that my challenge did not affect my work. My company was of course aware and fully supportive. I regularly have to travel from one station to another, but for me it was just an additional aspect of the challenge!

DR: Did you ever have doubts?

LM: Giving up was never an option. Of course, I had moments of doubt, extreme pain, during which I was really struggling. So yes, sometimes many questions would rush through my mind like “how will I make it to the end?”, “But why did you decide to do this?”, “What made you think you could make it?”. I had all these questions in my head but I always took the days separately, one step at a time, and that’s what allowed me to finish.

DR: With a few days of rest and perspective, does this adventure make you want to take on a new challenge like an ultramarathon or ultra-trail?

LM: Hmm… Maybe I’ll do an ultra or a 50k, but it seems to me that I will never do a challenge of such length again. A marathon a day for months… It was so hard. Maybe a race over 10 days? Something like that.

DR: Beyond the tribute to your brother, there was a charitable dimension in your challenge…

LM: Yes, I started out wanting to raise funds for two charities: If U Care Share, which works on suicide prevention and supports bereaved families, and RNLI, a sea rescue institution. My goal was to raise £10,000, £5,000 for each. In the end, I raised over £82,000, completely exceeding my goals. Never, ever could I have imagined reaching such amounts, it’s just crazy.

Leodhais’s challenge ended on June 2, 2025, the day his brother Conor would have turned 28. At the finish line, many people were present to share this moment of immense emotion. It was on this day that Leodhais chose to kneel down and propose to Jaimie, his partner.

128 days for eternity.