Tyre girl's marvellous marathon challenge
‘Tyre girl' Rima Chai has set herself the amazing task of running 100 marathons by 2020, dragging a hefty tyre behind her.


Rima passes in front of Buckingham Palace during the 2011 London marathon.

Rima, 45, from London, is already well on the way to achieving her target and has clocked up 19 marathons to date. She ran in this year's London marathon and is donating all the money she raises to Earthwatch and to ACRES in Singapore - an animal welfare charity. Through her marathon challenge she hopes to raise £5,000.

Rima says: "My first tyre dragging marathon was Singapore, 2006. I was training for a Polar expedition and needed an incentive to train with a tyre. A marathon seemed to be the most obvious solution. So I picked up running at that point in time, after only ever having run about five miles as my longest distance.

"Due to the quirky nature of a gal pulling a tyre in a marathon, I thought I could at the very least make people more aware of the impact they were making on their society so I began my campaign to highlight the importance of conservation and sustainability. A tyre symbolises everything that we have become reliant upon."

On its marks: Rima's tyre gets set at the start of the London marathon.

Pippa Johnson of Earthwatch, who together with other colleagues went along to support Rima at the London marathon in April, says: "Her time was just over eight hours. She has amazing stamina and determination and pretty much did the whole thing with a smile on her face. Fresh from completing 10 marathons in 2010, Rima has taken on the incredible feat of completing 100 marathons by 2020. As if this wasn't challenge enough she will be dragging a tyre all the way. That's an astonishing 2620 miles with a tyre!"

Rima will be continuing on her amazing marathon quest in 2011. If you would like to support her in her challenge to raise funds for Earthwatch, please visit her JustGiving page.