Gerard Helme (born 28 March 1957, also known as Gerry Helme) is a runner from

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

and

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

who was a top

long distance runner Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mensur ...

in the 1980s. He was part of the British team of three (along with Hugh Jones and

Mike Gratton Michael ("Mike") Colin Gratton (born 28 November 1954) is a male former elite long distance runner from Canterbury, Kent, England. Athletics career A member of the Kent athletics club Invicta AC, Gratton is a past winner of the London Marathon. ...

) that completed at the 1983 Men’s Marathon World Championship race.

Early career

Helme went to

Range High School Range High School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form located in Formby, Merseyside, England. It was built during the early 1970s after a contracted period of delays and was necessary due to the increasing overcrowding at near ...

and clocked a fast time in the Liverpool Corporate Cup. Later, he studied at

Liverpool College Liverpool College is a school in Mossley Hill, Liverpool, England. It was one of the thirteen founding members of the Headmasters' Conference (HMC). History Liverpool College was the first of many public schools founded in the Victorian E ...

in Lancaster,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, as most running was concentrated in club teams, Helme was a part of the

Ron Hill Ronald Hill MBE (25 September 1938 – 23 May 2021) was a British runner and clothing entrepreneur. He was the second man to break 2:10 in the marathon; he set world records at four other distances, and laid claim to the marathon world reco ...

Race Team that ran cross country and road races around the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Professional career

In 1981, Helme won of the

Freckleton Half Marathon The Freckleton Half Marathon is an annual road running event held in Freckleton, Lancashire, United Kingdom. The event was the idea of the then chairman of the local sport committee who was inspired by Ron Hill's performance in the 1964 Summer Ol ...

and the Birmingham Marathon. The following year, after ankle surgery, he won several more road races, including the St. Petersburg Marathon in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

and second place in the Orlando Marathon. At the

London Marathon The London Marathon is an annual marathon held in London, United Kingdom, and is the 2nd largest annual road race in the UK, after the Great North Run in Newcastle. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically held ...

in 1983, as the broadcasters covered the event on live TV, good weather and fast times moved the mass of 18,000 runners through the city streets. Helme, who had decided to run the race two days earlier, dueled with Henrik Jørgensen of

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and fellow

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runner

. Gratton took the lead in the end, and Helme finished second in 2:10:12, thirty seconds back. In the woman’s race that day,

Grete Waitz Grete Waitz (, 1 October 195319 April 2011) was a Norwegian marathon runner and former world record holder. In 1979, at the New York City Marathon, she became the first woman in history to run the marathon in under two and a half hours. Waitz wo ...

ran a blistering pace in the woman’s race to tie the world record. The following month, he was on the track in

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, for the 1983 UK Athletics Championships in the

10,000 meters The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship level events. The race ...

. He ran a 28:13.04 to finish third behind winner

Steve Binns Stephen John "Steve" Binns (born 25 August 1960 in Keighley) is a male British former long-distance runner. Athletics career Binns competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics. He rose to prominence in 1979 as a junior athlete. First he took the indi ...

. Still in great form, he traveled to the northeast shore of

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

to run a point-to-point race called

Grandma's Marathon Grandma's Marathon is an annual road race held each June in Duluth, Minnesota, in the United States. The course runs point-to-point from the city of Two Harbors on Scenic Route 61 and continues along Lake Superior into the city of Duluth. The ...

(named after a restaurant). He started in

Two Harbors, Minnesota Two Harbors is a city in and the county seat of Lake County, Minnesota, United States, along the shore of Lake Superior. The population was 3,633 at the 2020 census. Minnesota State Highway 61 serves as a main route in Two Harbors. Gooseberry ...

with 7,000 other runners and out paced them all to cross the finish line in

Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

in 2:12:09 for the win. His coaches had discouraged him from attending the race, as he was scheduled to run the World Championship marathon in August. The 1983 Men’s Marathon World Championship race in

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Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, did not go in his favor. As Rob deCastella ran to victory in 2:10:03, Helme fell back to 48th place. The following year, he focused on a shorter distance and entered the famous 11-kilometer cross-country race in Italy, the Cross di Alà dei Sardi. Over the grass and hills, he outran top runners such as Claudio Solone and Adriano Pezzoli to take home the first-place finish. By 1989, he was a major contender at large road races. He entered the

Rome Marathon The Rome Marathon is an annual marathon competition hosted by the city of Rome, Italy. History The competition has also doubled as the Italian Marathon championships on two occasions; in 1983 and 1986. The race date was shifted from the ...

, and many favored him to win. But Italian Giuseppe Gerbi got ahead on the

cobblestone Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct fro ...

streets and took the win. Helme, in his pink singlet, finished second.

Personal life

Helme later worked as a runner’s agent.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Helme, Gerry 1957 births Living people British male long-distance runners British marathon runners