SWINDON Harriers’ Hannah Claydon has paid her own personal tribute to coach and British running legend Bruce Tulloh, who died last weekend.

The former European 5,000m champion, who was also famous for running barefoot, was held in high esteem within the sport, with the accolades pouring in following the news of his passing, aged 82.

Claydon, who comes from Marlborough where Tulloh also lived and worked, only linked up with Tulloh in the last few years to help in her preparation to run the marathon and expressed her thoughts from Namibia, where she is conducting research for her Masters thesis and working with the Cheetah Conservation Fund.

“I am very sad to hear about this news,” said Claydon.

“I met up with him just a couple of days before the London Marathon and I knew he was unwell but it is always upsetting to hear it is the end.

“I am deeply saddened by this news. He was so supportive and a kind person who always showed a genuine interest in wanting to help me develop.

“I feel I have not yet unveiled my full potential and am gutted to have not been able to have this happen during Bruce’s life.

“My aim at the London Marathon was to go sub-two hours 50 minutes (she finished in 3:13.24), a target he said I could achieve, and so I am determined to get this time later this year.”

Tulloh had a wealth of knowledge about the marathon, not just from his own running experience, but also working with British Olympian and former Marlborough College teacher Richard Nerurkar.

But he didn’t just work with star names like Nerurkar.

“I first met Bruce at the Marlborough athletics track in January 2015,” added Claydon.

“I was doing a solo workout of 800m reps and he kindly came over to me and said he was impressed that I was doing such a hard workout so early in the year and on my own.

“I noticed he had a Great Britain running jacket on and was very flattered to have those comments. This then led to conversation about who he was and what events he used to run, what my goals were in terms of running and then transferring of email addresses.

“As soon as I got home I searched online and was amazed by all his achievements. Since then, I used to email him weekly with my training schedules and meet every so often at his home or out jogging together to catch up and gain some advice for my training.

“I was very touched to have him and his lovely wife, Sue, come watch me run a park run in Swindon once and their support for me at the past two London Marathons.

“Having Bruce as a mentor (alongside main coach Charlotte Fisher) has been so encouraging and is one reason why I chose to stick with the longer distances in running. He showed that he believed in my ability and that’s what really kept me motivated during hard training sessions.

“Not only was it running we both shared in common - we both love Africa and it’s wildlife. Bruce and Sue are patrons of the Tusk Trust - a charity I raised money for at last year’s marathon.

“They always spoke about the safaricom marathon in Kenya and how I should run it one day. That will be one of my aims for the near future.

“My warm wishes go to Sue and family at this sad time.”