Andy Goulding Hi my name is Andy Goulding, I am a marathon runner with Leevale AC but a lot of you may know me as one of the co-hosts for The Runners Diary Podcast.
been to a race nor did I see the attraction to it all. That day is a day I will never forget, what an experience, the support, the crowds, the buzz running around the streets of Cork, I couldn’t believe how much I loved it. At the time I had a lot of struggles in my life with a drug addiction and mental health issues. That day all be it only for a couple of hours, took me away from my worries and stress that surrounded me at the time. I always remember thinking the people that ran the marathon are just super human and I would love to be like them some day. I started taking running a bit seriously after that day while at the same time digging myself a deeper hole into the world of addiction. My life was hell for many years after this but I always found those couple of times a week that I went running was a massive escape for me. I think this is where my love for marathon running came from because the longer I ran meant the longer I was able to escape from the struggles I had in life. I battled on for another few years until eventually in July 2020 it all got too much and I tried to take my own life. What happened after that really showed me how special the running community is. I went into treatment for five months and on my return I was blown away by the support I received from everyone of my friends in the running community. Today I would say 95% of my friends I have met from running and it gives me so much joy to be able to share my running journey with like- minded people.
I am delighted to be running the Cork City marathon again this year for the fourth time. I have raced it in 2022 and 2023, I was also lucky enough to be one of the three hour pacers last year for the 2025 marathon. Cork Marathon always holds a special place in my heart, not only is it my home marathon but it was also my first ever race. Back in 2017 I ran the fourth leg of the relay with only a week’s notice after my brother in law got injured leading up to it. I honestly had never
35 Cork City Marathon 2026
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