Words Katie Campbell Spyrka
Megan Al-Ghailani confides with a smile: “I love running, but I’m not a great runner.” We’re chatting about her achievement of becoming the youngest woman – and the first hearing impaired person – to run 1000 miles from John O’ Groats in Scotland to Land’s End, Cornwall last year. Considering she ran up to 30 miles a day across trails, country roads and canal paths for 40 days straight, evidence suggests otherwise. But for the 23-year-old, running has never been about measuring distance or time. “I run for my mind and for me.
Running is about movement, being outside and the joy you get from it.” Megan is completely deaf in her left ear and has partial hearing in her right hear, so childhood was challenging.