I used to belong to a judo club which took place at Creeds, where Asda in Crowhurst Road, Brighton, is now.

It was about the time of the first or second London marathon. A friend suggested we enter the following year.

At that time, it involved queueing at a main post office to gain an entry to the event on a first come, first served basis.

I told my friend we needed to train right away to be fit in time but he dropped out.

The due date for registration arrived. I queued at 6am at Church Street post office.

Alas, I was not accepted. I was not accepted the following year either but another friend was. I asked him if I could borrow his number but he was reluctant.

So, I thought I would pin a square of paper to my T-shirt and tear it off at the corners as if it had come off.

There was very little scrutiny at the start of a race.

Somewhere along the way, I came upon a number on the ground, which really had suffered the fate I was going to try to convince the officials of.

On the way, an official pinned this number on me.

I crossed the line and was jubilant, for two reasons: I got my Mars bar and my medal.

-G Ratcliff, Walmer Crescent, Brighton