KURT Fearnley has long dreamt about winning a Commonwealth Games marathon gold medal and come Sunday morning, he will give everything in his power to make that dream come true.
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The 37-year-old Carcoar native will line up in the men’s T54 wheelchair marathon on the Gold Coast, the 42.2 kilometre push to be his last in Australian colours.
It is the first time the Para event has been included on a Commonwealth Games program and Fearnley makes no secret of his desire to become the inaugural winner.
“I live and breathe that marathon. I have dreamt about that marathon since the moment [Games organisers] put it in there,” he said.
“That’s been a big chunk of my life and on Sunday, everything that I’ve got is going into [trying to win].”
While Fearnley’s reputation over the years has been forged by numerous actions such as his efforts as a Para sport ambassador, sailing in the Sydney to Hobart, crawling the Kokoda Track, and standing on podiums in stadiums across the globe, it is the marathon for which he is best know.
He has won marathons in more than 10 different countries and stood on a podium on all the continents save Antarctica.
Fearnley’s won both Paralympic and world championship gold medals for the distance and knows the Australian sporting public will be cheering him on to add another to his list.
As well as being a sentimental favourite, Fearnley will be viewed by his rivals as the man to beat.
“It be one last long lap on the streets of the Gold Coast in my favourite event and the event I have had the most success in over the years, the 42.2 kilometre marathon,” Fearnley wrote on PlayersVoice.
“An hour and a half of my heart pounding at about 200 beats a minute to try and conquer the ultimate distance for Australia one last time.
“You could stretch more than 100,000 people across the course and, hopefully, we’ll see some big numbers on the streets cheering home all the athletes as a crowd can really make the last few kilometres special.
“I know that no matter how many people are there in person, there’ll be thousands tuned in, screaming at their televisions willing me to the finish line.
“And I’ll have the green and gold on my back.”