Josephine defies coronavirus concerns to complete first parkrun – aged 86!

Taking to the Lee-on-the-Solent course, she crossed the finish line in 1:00:22 - a magnificent effort.

In what was the last weekend of parkrun prior to the UK suspension on Tuesday because of the Covid-19 epidemic,

it was a remarkable achievement by Hillier.

Her son emailed event director Maggie Atkinson in advance in a bid to increase support for the first timer.

But Hillier was slightly embarrassed after completing the course, feeling she'd kept people waiting!

‘He wasn’t sure whether she would complete it and she’d need all sorts of encouragement along the way,’ said Atkinson.

‘She was amazing.She was a bit embarrassed that she kept people waiting, she said.

‘But it was not a problem at all. That was her very first parkrun amidst all the chaos.

‘If you do have underlying health concerns and are worried then don’t come down.’

The Lee parkrun usually attracts around 500 runners - and that was no different last weekend despite coronavirus concerns.

In total, there were 486 finishers and an increased number of volunteers.

As a whole across the country, there was a slight decrease on the previous week with 139,873 runners passing through the end-of-run scanners at 678 parkruns.

But that was still an improvement on the figure of 119,102 recorded on February 15 as Storm Dennis battered Britain.

Speaking prior to the global parkrun suspension, Atkinson believed the numbers that turned out at Lee showed the determination of runners to keep fit.

‘We’re following the advice that is coming out of parkrun and the latest information,’ she explained.

‘It was hardly spoken about at all on Saturday.

‘It was just business as usual. We had an influx of volunteers at the last minute as well.

‘Our roster was overflowing.

'We had no issues getting volunteers at all.

‘To have nearly 500 people there on Saturday was amazing.'