I'd never been to East London before, never mind the Olympic Park, so I didn't know what to expect from the Olympic Park Run. But coming into the Olympic Stadium at the end of the race, I had goose bumps and my hair was standing on end!

Crossing the line was such a happy feeling. Today, everyone was saying, "You are crossing the finishing line before the likes of great athletes like Usain Bolt". To be part of that was pretty special.

I started running again last year after recovering from a motorcycle accident in 2004. A car pulled out from a side road and wiped me out. My bike was a write-off. I narrowly avoided losing my leg below the knee. It was a slow recovery and it took me about two years before I could walk again unaided.

I had several operations. By the third one, they said to me, "Next time we take you into surgery we might have to amputate".  But luckily everything went fine. It's a weight on your mind to go into an operation knowing you might not come out of it with your leg.

I started my training for the Olympic Park Run by following The Couch-to-5k Running Plan, a regime designed to get complete beginners running five kilometres following a nine week training programme. My ultimate goal was to run a marathon, and after finishing the Plymouth Half Marathon in May I got an entry into this year's Virgin London Marathon, which I will be running in support of the Willen Hospice. 


Before we entered the Stadium in the final leg, we all had to run through the tunnel that's the official Olympic and Paralympic atheletes' entrance. There were speakers set up playing the music from Chariots of Fire. I think it was a bit of a joke. It was quite funny, and quite a few people were laughing about it.

When I stepped into the Stadium I could hear everyone shouting and I was worried about finding my mum and dad – Sharon and Steve – who had driven in with me. It took me a while, but I did see them. My mum looked very, very happy. She was obviously proud.

I was expecting the Stadium to be overwhelmingly large. It was lot smaller than I had anticipated, but it was still quite epic. I could imagine runners like Bolt competing here later this year, particularly when I noticed the jumping pits. I got a good look at the finish line as well. You really got a sense of the Olympic atmosphere.

Because of the amount of surgery I've had on my leg I do get the odd ache and pain. Last week my knee was a problem. I felt it for the first mile of the run, but I soon forgot about it.

They got us warmed up at the start by getting everyone dancing and jumping about. That was quite fun. Then they told us there was 25 minutes wait, but no one was groaning about it. I think everyone was just so happy to be in the race.


On my way into the Park, I stopped to get my picture taken with my mum and dad at every opportunity. And, of course, made sure I kept a smile on my face for the commercial photographers around the course! This is quite difficult when you are knackered, but you know you are going to be buying their photos later on, so it's worth smiling!

At the end of the race, we got a free certificate with our photo and finishing time printed time on it. And I have to say, the finishing medal we receieved is fantastic.

There was no problem parking in the nearby Westfield Stratford centre. When it came to getting into the Park, the queues were probably just over a mile or so long, but as soon as they opened the gates it was really quick to get in.

The Velodrome, the Aquatic Centre and the Olympic Stadium look fantastic. I felt very lucky to be running around in the Olympic Park before anyone else. It was great to see some of the venues without anyone else around – a little bit surreal too.

I think my time was 49 minutes, which was faster than ten minutes per mile I was aiming for. In the Marathon in three weeks' time, I am aiming for around five hours, so I'm about on for that. This was a brilliant preparation, and a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Alex Crawford is the website administrator for insidethegames. Living in Plymouth, he is also a member of the city's RNLI Lifeboat Station crew.