A YORK mum has completed a virtual Great North Run - on her own street.

Paula Wilkinson Titshall ran 13.1 miles up and down Burton Stone Lane, where she lives. This is the same distance as the Great North Run which had to be cancelled this year - its 40th year - due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Fed up of lockdown and wanting to make more of her daily exercise, Paula decided to participate in the GNR solo when lockdown restrictions began to lift. GNR solo involved completing a minimum of 40 runs between June 28 and September 13 - the day the Great North Run was scheduled to take place.

Paula explained: "I signed up at the beginning of July, intending to get a bronze award for reaching 100 miles within my 40 runs. When I realised my ‘training‘ was going ok, I set another goal of my 40th run being the virtual Great North Run.

"In the spirit of staying local and avoiding crowds, I completed the 13.1 miles in my own street, Burton Stone Lane."

She added: "It was an altogether different experience to the usual event, no lines of crowds cheering you on, no entertainment along the route, and I have to wait for my medal to appear in the post. But I did get a few smiles from local people and an 'oggy, oggy, oggy' from a small group of other runners who saw my homemade race number, and that lifted my spirits as I completed more lengths."