Anya Culling: Briton's rapid rise from four-hour finish time to London Marathon elites

"Honestly, I just want to hug Anya in 2019. She just wasn't as happy as I am now."

The Anya Culling of five years ago would certainly be forgiven for struggling to comprehend how much she has gone on to achieve so quickly.

It took her more than four and a half hours to complete the London Marathon in 2019 but on Sunday she will take her place among the race's elite women, having reduced her personal best by two hours.

The excitement in the 25-year-old's voice is infectious as she considers how she will feel on the start line. Often nervous pre-race, Culling admits her family would normally need to "tread on eggshells" around her. "Instead I'm dancing around my flat with adrenaline," she tells BBC Sport.

Culling had little interest in running prior to the pandemic. Her competitive streak had led her to throwing herself "in at the deep end" for her first - and still "most painful" - marathon.

She had also overcome serious health issues to make the start line in 2019, having a benign tumour removed and undergoing radiotherapy to treat an over-active thyroid.

"I just lost a lot of my confidence," says Culling.

"I was on steroids and the natural thing is for you to gain a bit of weight. I had been in and out of hospital - I remember getting my GCSE results in hospital and it continued for quite a few years after that.

"Running was a way to be healthy and find that confidence again. I have never been a more confident person and it's not really because of the results but because of how it has made me feel."

It was during lockdown that Culling was able to use running to benefit her mental wellbeing. With her background in team sports, it provided a social activity as lockdown rules were relaxed.

She has made remarkable progress since. Culling set five consecutive personal bests following her first marathon, culminating in her time of two hours 34 minutes 45 seconds on her England debut in Copenhagen last May.

That streak of improvements ended when she ran just 57 seconds slower in Berlin in September - important in itself, Culling says, because it reminded her to "enjoy the journey".

"It wasn't until lockdown that I realised the peacefulness of running, and the simplicity of it. That really helped me get through lockdown and it was when I really started enjoying it. I just naturally progressed my training as that continued," Culling explains.

"I think if I'd started running when I was younger, I probably wouldn't enjoy it now. I could easily have taken it all far too seriously.

"I think for me to realise that, this soon into my journey, that I won't enjoy if it take it too seriously, is a big thing."

It is an approach which Culling has harnessed as she prepares for her third London Marathon, and her first among the elites alongside runners such as Ethiopia's world record holder Tigst Assefa.

Culling admits she has felt more pressure as her performances have improved - and self-doubt has led to tears during previous preparations. But she has learned to "take a step back" and be proud of her achievements to date.

"I have taken a lot of the pressure off myself compared to previous races. I know I just need to keep going and not overthink everything. Hopefully that will pay off," Culling says.

"I just never considered I would be able to do this; it was never in my mind. The times and personal bests were always secondary.

"I am blown away whenever I think about what I've done. I still think it's beginner's luck, but then lockdown was a long time ago.

"I just think about myself in 2019, the difference between me then and now. My brother would join me on runs and he'd have to wait at every single corner for me to catch up. I used to walk in cross country at school."

Now she is preparing to return to the race that has marked significant milestones in her career, having taken almost two hours off her 2019 time - when she was the 7,546th woman - in her most recent London Marathon to be the third British woman across the line in 2022.

Racing in the city which has been her home since 2018, Culling intends to keep that bigger picture sharply within view as she takes the next steps of her whirlwind journey on Sunday.

"It blows my mind when I get messages from people telling me I'm an inspiration to them, I don't really believe it," Culling says.

"But I think that motivation will get me through London because I'll be running with the elites and I am still bridging that gap between amateur and elite.

"Before 2019, I thought the London Marathon was this race to come first but, really, the reason for most people running is bigger than that. They are doing it for someone, for a cause, in someone's memory.

"It was the first marathon I ever did, and the two times I've done it have been pivotal in my running career. I think it will be an emotional one but I will try my best to stay rational."

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