Joyce Smith
Women's Running Icon No.16
Joyce Smith MBE is a legend. The first female winner of the inaugural London Marathon in 1981, she ran 2:29:57 – becoming the only woman over 40 to run sub 2:30. When she won again in 1982, in another sub 2:30 time, she set another record, which still stands today, becoming the oldest woman to win London, aged 44.
Joyce was way ahead of her time when it came to marathon running in the early 1980s, even though she was comparatively new to the distance, as it was only newly available for women to compete in.