A KEMPSHOTT woman has achieved something that very few women in the UK have - completing the ‘World Series’ of marathons.

Debbie Cook has run a grand total of nine marathons - six of which make up the Abbott World Marathon Majors, a prized medal for the collection of any marathon runner.

The 41-year-old achieved the accolade for completing all the races in style, setting a personal best in finishing the Tokyo Marathon in 3 hours and 36 minutes on March 3.

The races which make up the World Marathon Majors are New York, London, Berlin, Boston, Chicago, and Tokyo, and a runner has to complete all six to win the medal.

In the UK, only 183 women, including Debbie, have completed the challenge, with just 1,376 women in the world having completed this marathon exploit.

Mother-of-three Debbie said: “It was really hard to do all of them, some of the marathons made it so that you have to do a marathon first to qualify for the marathon that you wanted to do.”

It was only after her youngest child turned one-year-old that Debbie took to running.

She added: “I didn’t really know what to do with myself and I wasn’t sure what to do, and so I started running. I ended up really enjoying it and caught the running bug.

“I thought I would give a marathon a try by doing the New York Marathon in 2015, and when I completed it, I was absolutely elated. It was the first one that I had ever done, and it was possibly my favourite as I had managed to run one for the first time.”

Debbie managed to complete her first marathon in New York, despite the fact that she had been injured in training before going to America.

“The most memorable marathon was the Boston Marathon that had record-breaking bad weather, including 40mph winds and rain throughout the entire day.

“It’s been difficult to train, having to be out in all weathers, including the snow recently. I do about 90 per cent of my training on my own, but it is my quiet time and how I relax.

“My children are very proud of me and my whole family have been very supportive. My children have learned why mum gets up so early in the morning now.

“That and the prospect of getting the six-star award are what kept me going and encouraged me to get up for the early mornings for training.”

The next running adventure for Debbie will be marathon number ten as she will be taking part in the London event again later this year.