Monkey Sox co-founder Lianne on marriage, marathons and MS
Words: Rachel Ifans
Running is about way more than PBs and physical prowess. We evangelistas all know that. For Lianne Carvell, running has been there for her as a teen, through womanhood, pregnancy and post partum. It’s intrinsically linked to her work life, it’s a way to clear her head and a chance to spend time with her husband… Unusually, it even played a large part in his marriage proposal.
Not many runners can boast a finish-line proposal, never mind one at the London Marathon! But Lianne’s then-boyfriend James ran the whole 26.2 miles with a ring wrapped in foil and carefully stowed in his running shorts. There it had been, unbeknown to Lianne, in the rucksack, in flat-lay photos, around the course they mostly ran together… until he surprised her at the end, in front of cameras and the world’s press.
Lianne explains: “It was 10 years ago, in 2013. James finished the race a good half an hour ahead of me and managed to persuade the race officials that he could wait for me at the finish line. It was a genuine shock when he asked me to marry him because, although I’d probably always thought he’d ask me in some kind of sweaty lycra state, due to the nature of our personalities, I wasn’t expecting it then!”
Lianne and James were in various newspapers the next day (if you google “proposal at London Marathon 2013” you’ll see their purple vests and elated faces smiling back at you) and they put their marathon kit back on for the registry office part of their wedding day. “James said in his wedding speech that he thought he’d choose a moment when I was too exhausted to say no. I just dropped my head and he took that as a yes!” Lianne laughs.
Falling in love with running
Lianne and James got together when they were in sixth form and together found a love of running. Lianne says: “Since then, it’s been my go-to form of keeping fit. I think it’s because it’s great to do on your own or in company and it can be as flexible as you need.” Lianne has been running for 20 years now, and she’s trained for and competed in lots of races and enjoyed the sense of achievement she’s got from those experiences. But she’s also had two babies, adjusted her expectations, gone through phases where she’s lessened her pace and distances and enjoyed running for other reasons, and she’s also had times when
