A TEAM of six men dressed as a caterpillar have smashed the world record for the fastest six-person costume marathon.

Dorset-based Team Phil crossed the line at the Manchester Marathon in an astonishing two hours, 57 minutes and 30 seconds on Sunday, April 14, with the previous record standing at four hours, 25 minutes.

The group, which took on the Bournemouth Bay Run in March, are raising money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association, after they lost a friend, Phil Rossall, last year.

Led by Marcus Green, the sextet also featured James Bewley, David Mills, Nick Wright, Hugh Tibbs and Rich Bidgood in their costume affectionately called Philipillar the caterpillar.

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Marcus said the race was ‘really tough’.

“We always knew it was going to be a big challenge to run in under three hours with the costume being the way it is, being attached to each other, we can’t see our way forward individually,” he said.

“We did say quite a bit in the run up it’s going to be challenging because it’s six marathons that are going to be run, it’s not just one person.

“There’s always a dark moment, no matter how in shape or how ready you are, it’s a cruel beast.”

The group were forced to stop for toilet breaks and Marcus himself faced issues with cramp with around a mile to go, losing around six minutes in total across the race.

“We still had a small buffer to get under the three-hour mark,” Marcus said.

“That was the thing that was most important to us. So, we knew we could, if we just kept going for that last half mile around the corner, as long as we didn't walk it.

“Thankfully we put on a sprint for the finish, we managed to get ourselves in through the finish line at 2 hours, 57 minutes and 30 seconds.

“So really, really delighted with that.”

Bournemouth Echo:

The group is waiting for the official word from Guinness of the successful world record, but Marcus believes they now have the record for the fastest multi-person marathon.

Looking forward, he is keen to make the most of the group’s momentum in fundraising.

They have raised more than £9,000 from the marathon efforts but have raised around £70,000 in total from all their fundraising since 2019.

Marcus said he isn’t sure what they will do but promised that it would be ‘faster and more silly’.

Bournemouth Echo:

“Fundraising is important, but Phil was so keen that money was put towards research for a cure and really to raise awareness,” Marcus said.

“So, to do something as amazing and silly as you can, grab limelight, then have that platform, which is what we've had, and I hope we've done a lot of good work for motor neuro disease awareness.

“It would be remiss of us to not try and build off of that.”

For more information and to donate, search for Marcus Green on the JustGiving website.