A fire service professional from Bicester who accomplished the 2026 London Marathon has shared his plans to keep running as a way of honouring two colleagues who tragically passed away.

Jamie Gough, who is 34 years old, has served at Bicester Fire Station for over nine years, with three of those as a full-time firefighter.

The emergency worker, who was born and grew up in Bicester, covered the 26.2-mile distance in three hours and 22 minutes, arriving at the finish line on The Mall near Buckingham Palace alongside almost 60,000 other participants.

He has so far collected more than £3,000 for The Fire Fighters Charity in remembrance of his late colleagues Jennie Logan and Martyn Sadler, who died in the Bicester Motion fire in May 2025.

Near the beginning of the race, Gough was struck by how he had reached this moment, which brought tears to his eyes but also gave him motivation and assurance. However, at various points when he felt like quitting, he had to remind himself that this was for his colleagues. He imagined they would be watching from above, chuckling at what a fool he was making of himself, which is exactly the type of people they were.

Dressed in his orange charity vest showing photographs of Jennie and Martyn, he received backing from onlookers and other competitors who wanted to know about his cause.

According to Gough, the atmosphere was fantastic, with crowds being so lively and supportive, calling out his name and providing that extra push when he was pushing himself to continue. He wanted to make himself visible and share their images with others, letting people understand why he was running—to honour their memory and the legacy they left behind. There was a big cry of gratitude when he accomplished it because he never believed he would be able to finish.

Though this marked his debut full marathon—having usually taken part in half-marathons—Mr Gough admitted he prepared casually because of sleepless nights caused by his son born in December.

Many people stick to a schedule, but Gough simply extended his distance with each run whenever time permitted. He managed to reach around 20 miles during training and hoped the event-day atmosphere would carry him to the finish, which it did.

Having completed his first marathon, he is already contemplating another—specifically targeting under three hours.

Gough expressed that he wants to keep doing this, perhaps running a marathon each year, believing it would be a fitting way to honour them.