Keen runner Dave Witnall will never forget the Paris Marathon in 2019.

It was where the now 40-year-old recorded a personal best over 26.2 miles – three hours, nine minutes – but, more importantly, it was the day he proposed to his now wife Ellie.

Ellie was also running that day – she too recorded a personal best, completing in three hours, 42 – and Witnall said: “We got engaged about 40 minutes after she’d finished her run, it was on the island at the Arc de Triomphe.

“Our marathon times from that day are engraved on the inside of our wedding rings.”

That April day more than five-and-a-half years ago was the second time that Witnall had run the marathon in Paris.

He also ran it in 2015 and ask him if it’s his favourite course and he says “100 per cent, the crowds are brilliant, it’s a flat course and the scenery is brilliant.”

The scenery is pretty decent in the Cotswolds, too, where Witnall has lived for the past 15 years or so.

Originally from Solihull, he lived in Fairford before moving to Cirencester some 12 years ago and he has become well known in the area because he is head coach at Cirencester-based club Running Somewhere Else.

He also coaches at Cirencester Athletics Club and he said: “I’ve always loved my running, I’ve been running since the age of 12.”

Witnall joined Running Somewhere Else soon after moving to this part of the world and his wife is also a keen runner.

“She was more of a swimmer before we met but she’s now a fully-fledged member of Running Somewhere Else,” Witnall said. “She’s running the London Marathon next year.”

Witnall ran the London Marathon back in 2014 and he has also run marathons in Liverpool, Manchester, Amsterdam and Dublin.

His next marathon is in Newport in April and although he’ll run anything from 10K upwards, he says the marathon is his favourite distance.

“Running a marathon properly is a big achievement,” he said. “There’s so much science behind it. You’ve got to train properly and try to avoid hitting the wall.

“The sense of achievement when you’ve done one is better than getting a medal.”

Witnall has picked up plenty of medals over the years, of course, and has a PB for the 10K of 38 minutes dead, a time he set at Bourton-on-the-Water.

His best half-marathon time is one hour, 27 minutes, one second, which he achieved in Stratford soon after the Paris Marathon in 2019.

Witnall is also a big fan of cross-country and in particular he enjoys competing in the Gloucestershire Cross-Country League.

“I like the team element, the camaraderie,” he said. “I like the challenge of running in the mud against some of the best athletes in Gloucestershire and Avon.

“We’re running against guys from Western Tempo, Cheltenham and from Bath. They are some of the best around but I just like getting stuck in.”

He also likes the coaching side of things and believes the extra responsibility has enhanced his own running.

“I’ve been a coach for five or six years, and I’ve been head coach at Running Somewhere Else for 18 months,”  said Witnall, a qualified chef who runs a catering business.

“I organise the sessions on Monday and Wednesday evenings. There are eight or 10 of us coaches, I’m very blessed to have them.

“I coach at Cirencester a couple of times a month and what I love is seeing athletes improving through the year.”

Witnall is passionate about his running and he wants to see as many people as possible take up the sport.

“Winter is a great time to join a club and run with others,” he said. “All the routes are planned safely, and on well-lit streets and paths.”

And while runners’ safety is obviously paramount, Witnall believes some runners can do more to help themselves.

“All too often I see runners around the area running in dark clothing in the evenings or night,” he said.

“They are not very visible to motor vehicles and the public. Runners should consider reflective, hi-visibility clothing and a head or chest torch.”