This week I’m back with another Interview! This time with my friend and colleague Celine. Celine and I have worked together for a few years now and we also live in the same town. When I first moved to the town Celine was always on hand to help me understand what the area had to offer. They were also a key factor in my first steps on the road to being healthier with running and Park Run! I wanted to have a chat with Celine and understand her story, especially how she tackled the London Marathon in 2023!
Q . Tell us a little about yourself, who are you and where are you from?
A. I’m Celine, originally from France but I’ve been living in England for all of my adult life. I live with my partner David who is British and we’ve been together for over 18 years.
Q. Where in France are you from?
A. I am from a little town in the South of France roughly 25 kilometres away from Marseille on the Mediterranean coast.
Q. What was it like growing up and living there. Is there anything that area is known for?
A. My region is the sunniest part of France, close to the seaside so I spent a lot of time outdoors and by the sea. I grew up in a small town and as a teenager I thought it was quite boring but as an adult I’ve come to appreciate the good things about it. It is quite a relaxing place where people are quite laid back. Yet we are close to cities like Marseille and Aix-en-Provence.
Q. You mentioned being in England for most of your adult life was there a particular reason you moved here?
A. I was at university in France in Aix-en-Provence and studied modern languages, English and Spanish. As a part of my university course, I had to come to England as an exchange student, it was called the Erasmus Programme and I came to England for 6 months around 3 years into my course. I was actually crying on my way to England because I didn’t want to go, but I had two of my university friends with me so we travelled together to Wolverhampton which probably isn’t the most popular destination to pick as an exchange student, but once we all settled we loved the student life and were happy.
Q. How would you say your language ability was at the time, did you initially find It difficult to communicate, especially as the accent in that area is quite unique.
A. Yeah we were not prepared for the accent, simple things were difficult for us such as booking a taxi, they didn’t understand our accent and we couldn’t understand theirs at first. I think we adapted quite quickly though, we were among a huge community of international students and we adjusted well.
Q. After the 6 months did you stay on or head back to France?
A. I did stay on, to my parents surprise! I enrolled in a further degree in Wolverhampton and stayed there for another year. I enrolled in a final year of a BA in European studies whilst also continuing my Masters in France. I was still going back and forth to France each holiday though. I found studying in England refreshing compared to France where students tend to stay home when going to university but in the UK students tend to live away and integrate into a new place. I also went to do further Masters in Canterbury because I just loved the learning environment in this country.
Q. When you finished all of your studies what did you go on to do in England?
A. After graduating I looked for a job and found one in London quite quickly, I moved there and worked for a big Airline for 11 years! I worked in Customer Service, sales support and group sales looking after travel agencies primarily in France and Belgium. I was made redundant after 11 years. I loved the airline industry and the perks and worked for a different airline at the airport itself, but the shift work was quite draining so after 13 years in the Airline industry, I changed careers to recruitment which is where I still am now.
Q. Do you find England and France are similar or quite different?
A. Yes quite different, I find that England is quite open minded and accepting and there is less judgement.
Q. Do you still feel you are connected to France in some way, you mentioned before you tended to visit a lot, in fact you just came back recently.
A. My heart is split in two, I am French and I will remain French but I know I’ve changed a lot by living in England, my attitude to life for example, my heart is also in England.
Q. Is there anything in particular you miss about France
A. Other than my family it would be the sunshine! Of course the food like bread and cheese, also being outdoors more, it’s harder to enjoy the outdoors in England but in the South of France from March to October it’s easier! I do think English people may appreciate sunshine more though as it is rarer!
Q. Is there anything you feel could be improved about the France?
A. I think England has a good community spirit and that is lacking in France on the same level.
Q. What is something underrated about France?
A. Probably the landscape, we have everything from mountains to the seaside, cities to the countryside in a relatively small space. You could drive from the Mediterranean to the Alps in 2 hours.
Q. It’s interesting to me that French and English are spoken in so many countries, it must be great to have such a wide array of places in which you could communicate quite easily? Would you recommend French as a language to study?
A. Yes, I think having another language helps build relationships, and broaden your mind as you learn about other cultures, but I think people should study a language they have an interest in or some link to such as holidays, family or heritage. I can speak Spanish, a little Italian and Greek too, the more languages you speak the easier they are to pick up.
Q. What do you really enjoy about England?
A. I love the people & the multicultural society, the mentality, etc. Also, there is so much to do, places are open all the time whereas in France on a Sunday life kind of stops. I love London, musical theatre and concerts here.
Q. Anything you feel could be improved about the UK or more specifically, England?
A. Yes stop selling ‘baguettes’ as French Bread!
Q. French cuisine is pretty well known compared to British but there any British meal you really enjoy?
A. Yes a Full English breakfast on a Sunday! Second to that I would say a Sunday Roast with Beef and specifically two Yorkshire puddings as well as lots of gravy! Actually one of the only foods I bring back to France is Bisto Gravy, my family love it every Christmas because we don’t have anything like it.
Q. Is there somewhere in the UK that you feel is a must visit?
A. I would have to say Cornwall, it has its own micro-climate and fantastic beaches. Also Norfolk would be a great place to visit, specifically Holkham Beach.
Q. I’d like to take a focus on running now. You are one of the factors that got me more into my fitness over the last year or so, you introduced me to Parkrun and running in general but what is it about running that you enjoy?
A. I started running late in my life and I wished I’d started sooner but I love it because it keeps me fit physically but also mentally, it’s unbelievable for my wellbeing. I am part of a running club called Maidenhead Athletic club, I go to my local parkrun and usually I run in a group. I always feel good when I run and I find it helps release any stress or anxiety, I use it to clear my head or if I’m alone I find it helps me think and analyse situations.
Q. I would certainly echo those thoughts. I’ve heard the term ‘a runners high’ would you agree that this is a real thing?
A. Absolutely, when I run in a group we all chat the whole time, it’s a social thing for me and makes me feel so positive.
Q. Do you feel part of a wider community, when we ran together it seems you know everybody in the running community at parkrun or I’ll see you with the Athletic club when I go to the track.
A. Yes totally, I’ve made a lot of friends through running, we all feel connected and like seeing family every week at parkrun. We motivate each other, cheer each other on.
Q. I felt the same when we ran together, you encouraged me and you still give me great advice. I’m not as in to the community as you are but I do feel connected through you.
Q. You recently completed the London Marathon, how do you even begin to prepare for it, how much planning do you feel you need to do and what support do you need?
A. It was my first Marathon but I had run 18 half marathons in total, I was always putting my name in the ballot for London just to see if I would be accepted. One year I was successful so I was excited and I was determined, I got a coach who wrote a personal plan for me which I committed to. They wanted to know my goals and help me get through the training uninjured.
I did not care for a time I just wanted to enjoy myself on the day, so they helped me with my fitness but I had to stick to the plan, I started in December training 4 times a week and the Marathon was in April. 5 months of following the plan including long runs and interval training, and building up to 20 miles and so on. It was a huge investment physically and mentally; my life was on standby other than running. You really need to have strong determination to do this.
Q. What was it like on the day, I imagine the energy of the atmosphere is electric
A. It was electric, I completed it in four and a half hours and it was the best day of my life. I was euphoric for 4 and a half hours, living my best life. I couldn’t stop smiling as the crowd really carried you, my name was plastered all over my clothes and you’d have the crowd cheering you by name even if they didn’t know you. I was lucky that I had my family over and my partner and friends also cheering me on. I’d recommend you go to watch the Marathon if you can, we go every year.
Q. I can imagine it’s quite an emotional experiences
A. Yes I cried tears of joy!
Q. How do you continue to push yourself in running and fitness in general? I imagine there were times you felt like you wanted to stop during the London Marathon?
A. It’s all in your head, the hardest thing is getting out of the door and being motivated but when I am running, I always think about the sense of achievement at the end and that it doesn’t matter how long it takes to get there but that I will get there eventually and once I do I’ll feel better for it.
Q. Do you have any other goals you want to achieve while running any other marathons or distances?
A. I had such an amazing experience before that I don’t feel any other marathon will compare, I’m enjoying not training for anything specific right now!
Q. What advice would you give to somebody hesitant to take up running as I think you’ve got quite a few people into it?
A. Yes I love to preach! My advice would be just to turn up at a local parkrun, you’ll meet loads of lovely people, start by walking the course, get a feel for it. You can also volunteer at parkrun and help those doing the running. When you start getting in to it you’ll soon find it addictive and will naturally want to get better!
Q. I’m quite focused on travel these days so my final question to you is, what Is your dream destination, either somewhere you’ve been or wish to go and why?
A. I’ve been lucky to travel a lot, I’d say Japan is amazing because of how different the culture is, Brazil for its landscapes and nature, the Caribbean for the variety of islands. It’s too hard to pick one place but I’d recommend visiting as much of the world as you can.
I want to thank Celine again, for the interview and her continued support regarding my running! I would echo a lot of her thoughts here regarding running and absolutely recommend it. Why not use this opportunity to check out your local parkrun or running groups and see what they have to offer?
Interviews With You! By Lewis Jane 