A man who was born without any limbs has finished the Belfast City Marathon on a skateboard.
In what was his 14th marathon, Canadian Chris Koch from Alberta completed the race in 4 hours and 57 minutes.
Speaking to Belfast Live, he said that despite the run being the wettest in the 14 he has completed, the people of Belfast definitely made up for it.
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Chris told the publication: "That was the most rain that I have ever seen in a marathon.
"I find the roads here in Ireland and the UK can be a lot rougher to what I am used to in North America which makes it a little more challenging but the hills weren't too bad in this one so it was good."
The Canadian explained that he first gained an interest in participating in marathons in 2016 when he and his girlfriend at the time signed up to do a marathon relay in LA on St Valentine's Day. The organisers, however, would not let Chris compete using his longboard.
"I said to them that if I had legs, I would run the thing but it was a hard no," he said.
"I then got speaking to the race organiser of the Calgary Marathon and she said that they looked at cases on an individual basis and saw no reason why it would be an issue for me to do the Calgary Marathon.
"I called her up and I said that instead of doing half, I would like to do the full marathon and so I did my first full marathon in 2016 and I have done at least one a year since then."
Chris said that his love for marathons was akin to an addiction but that it is an excuse to travel the world.
"I was soaking wet by the end which was uncomfortable but there was one little girl about mile 18, about six years old and she was shouting 'You can do it, all you have to do is believe in yourself' which was pretty cute as that is one of those points in the race where you can get pretty tired.
"All along the course there is people cheering you along but that little girl in particular stood out. I have been to Dublin a couple of times and the people are great but I found Belfast as a whole to be even more welcoming, hospitable and kind."
Chris spent three days in Belfast and has travelled to Dublin to meet his mother who is a flight attendant, showing her around the city.
"One of my biggest regrets was not staying in Belfast longer," he added.
"A side purpose for doing these marathons is to encourage people. Anyone can complete a marathon as the human body is capable of doing some pretty amazing things. Your mind can get in the way and tell you that you are too tired or too sore but the body can withstand it all."
Chris also thanked the marathon organisers for allowing him to participate and said that he looks forward to returning to take part again.
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