readymix, steady, go!
james langar and neil wallis on their epic london marathon adventure
This weekend, more than 56,000 runners will head to the capital’s streets to take part in the 2025 London Marathon. Among them will be our very own assistant operations manager, James Langar and plant manager, Neil Wallis.
Like many of those taking part, James and Neil each have their own reasons for running in the iconic event, so we sat down with them to learn more about their stories.
Q. How did you end up applying to participate in the London Marathon?
Neil: “I ran the Brighton Marathon last year and then again in April of this year, but I’ve always wanted to run the London Marathon.
“How it works is that you pay your entry fee and you’re put into a ballot for the London Marathon, but if you don’t get selected, you get entered into the Brighton one instead. At first, I didn’t get selected again this year, but then I got offered a free charity space.”
James: “I started running 14 years ago to lose weight for my wedding and then I got the bug for it. I’ve run a few half-marathons and raised a bit of money for charity. I ran in the Great North Run three years ago and then said to myself it was time to hang up my shoes…but then I signed up with my best mate to run the London Marathon this year!
“I just happened to Google the London Marathon one night and the application form came up with a 15-minute countdown, which I saw as a sign to apply.”
Q. How much money have you raised so far?
James: “I’ve raised £2,120 and quite a lot of that has come from my work colleagues.”
Neil: “And I’ve raised £800 so far.”
Q. And which charities are you supporting?
James: “I’m raising money for Make Some Noise, which is a bigger organisation that supports smaller, more community-based charities. They’ve been really supportive throughout the whole process. In fact, I received an email from them to say that, because I’ve reached my fundraising target, they’ve given me two tickets for my family to sit in the grandstand on the finish line and offered me a gin tasting experience!”
Neil: “I’m raising money for Hospice UK, which is a charity that focuses on making end-of-life care the best it can be. These charities really are unsung heroes and they’ve been there for a lot of people, including myself, through the darkest of times.”
Q. What motivated you to want to run the London Marathon?
Neil: “To be honest, I’ve had an awful couple of years. I lost both my mum and dad within a year of each other and in between that, I had a car crash and lost my job. It was a tragic turn of events.
“I was angry at the world and I thought ‘I can either sit here and mope or I can do something useful’. So I ran the marathon last year to build my mental strength. I didn’t think it would be as hard as it was. But once you start running, you know you’re going to finish. Starting is the hardest part.
“My aunt died very recently and the hospice was there for my uncle at the very end of her life, during the hardest parts. That’s one of the main reasons why I’m running for Hospice UK this year.”
James: “For the past 12 years, running the London Marathon has always been on my bucket list. It’s all about the challenge for me. If I can get over the line at this stage in my life, I can show people that you can get through most things with the right support around you.
“Running the marathon with my colleagues, including Neil, spurs me on and being able to raise money for a brilliant charity is also really rewarding. It’s great to be able to give something back.”
Q. Aside from your marathon training, what do you get up to outside of work?
James: “I’m a family man and, to be honest, I think my wife will be pretty glad when the marathon training is over! That’s because we’re actually foster carers. During Covid, my wife wasn’t working so we decided to look into becoming foster parents. We completed all the training over lockdown, which took a year and a half, and since then we’ve had five babies come in and out of our care.
“We’ve got two daughters of our own: one who’s about to turn 16 and one who’s about to turn eight. And we’re also moving house at the minute so, to be honest, I don’t have much spare time and the time I do have I love spending at home with my family.”
Neil: “I’ve started to get into history and learning about old buildings, so I like to go out and see how engineering has stood the test of time. It really impresses me when I see it all up close. I’m interested in that ‘big idea’ and seeing it stood in front of me all these years later is really fascinating.”
Q. How are you hoping the big day goes this weekend?
Neil: “The good thing for me is that I’m in wave five of the race, which means I start nearly an hour before James, so I’ll have a good head start. I might even have to wait for him at the finish line!”
James: “I’m hoping on the day that the adrenaline takes over and everyone there supporting me will help me get over that finish line.”
Everyone at Holcim wishes James and Neil the best of luck in the London Marathon and we can’t wait to hear all about how their race went.
To donate to James, please click here.
To donate to Neil, please click here.
