Practical Action Man to attempt London Marathon world record

Charity mascot must now complete 26 miles a whole hour quicker

The orange lycra-suit runner hopes to outpace other costumed joggers
Witnesses are poised to register official recognition of the world-record attempt
Clad head-to-toe in a skin-tight bright orange zentai morph suit, charity mascot Practical Action Man of Highbury, North London, will pit weeks of training against around 36,000 other runners in the 2015 London Marathon on 26 April.

The time to beat, he was told, was 3 hours and 51 minutes, for the Guinness World Record of fastest marathon as a mascot. However, in a change of fate, Practical Action Man, who lives on Aberdeen Road, was then recategorised for fastest marathon in a zentai suit, for which a 2h48m record was set in 2014, in a tiger morph suit which achieved fastest marathon dressed as an animal.

And so facing the 32 year-old runner, is now a very steep record attempt. ‘The sudden change has come as a big shock, but I have channelled all of it in to training, training and more training,’ Practical Action Man explains. ‘Success on the day will depend on good weather – ideally, cloudy skies with a light breeze. My suit covers my face so breathing and chafing may be a challenge, especially if it rains or is very sunny. Nevertheless, my determination is greater than ever now.’

The 6’3” orange figure has been seen striding through London once before, in the Royal Parks Half Marathon of 2013 – also in support of namesake Practical Action, an international development charity that uses technology to help people in developing countries escape poverty.

Declining to reveal his identity, Practical Action Man said: ‘Opportunities to train in the suit have been limited since I didn’t want to cause heart attacks to dog walkers and car crashes to drivers by jogging around the park in it. However, not having run much in the suit adds mystery, uncertainty and nervous excitement to my steely orange determination. I’m sure that the huge crowd support on the day will give me a lot of encouragement.’

To support Practical Action Man’s fundraising efforts please visit: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/PracticalActionManMarathonWorldRecord

For more information: www.practicalaction.org

Practical Action uses technology to challenge poverty in developing countries. We find out what people are doing and help them to do it better. Through technology we enable poor communities to build on their skills and knowledge to produce sustainable and practical solutions.