Sunderland Olympian Aly Dixon retires after 13 amazing years of international marathons and competitions

Aly Dixon, 43 from Silksworth has completed her sixth major marathon in Chicago to mark her retirement from competitive athletics after 13 years of international events.

The two time British marathon champion, who started running at 11-years-old has now completed marathons in London, New York, Boston, Chicago, Berlin and Tokyo.

Her successful career also includes competing in the Olympics, Commonwealth Games and World Championships.

The 43-year-old, who chose to wear her Sunderland Strollers vest and Olympic shorts for her final race, says her retirement has been ‘in the books for a while’.

Aly said: “I knew my last race would be emotional but I didn’t anticipate how emotional it would be, it all kind of hit me at once.

"My body is feeling tired and it was becoming harder so I wanted to retire before I began to resent running, like it was a chore, but my career has been everything and more, I’ve loved it.”

The Sunderland legend followed in the footsteps of her father who was also a marathon runner and joined Sunderland Harriers as a child, later switching to Sunderland Strollers.

She said: “I was born into running, my dad actually missed a 10K race on the day I was born – I’ve always enjoyed it and you have to work damn hard but I would do it all again in a heartbeat.

"My highlight has got to be the Olympics which was incredible, it was an honour to represent Great Britain, all the races I’ve done over the years have some sort of significance.”

The Sunderland Stroller now plans to take part in local running events for enjoyment.

She added: “I won’t be looking to win or put pressure on myself to do well because I just want to enjoy the local races and hopefully inspire others in the community to get involved with running, because it’s never too late!

"The people of Sunderland have always got behind me and I can’t thank everyone enough for the support over the years, it’s great to be able to put Sunderland on the map – It’s be a brilliant journey and I’ve enjoyed it all.”

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