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Elise Downing is known for being the first woman, and the youngest person, to run around the coast of Britain – a staggering total of 5000 miles and 301 days of running – all whilst carrying her own kit. Consisting of not much more than a tent and a sleeping bag, this feat, she says, is ‘the best thing I’ve ever done,’ and now is a motivational speaker focussing on goal setting, running in the great outdoors, career focus, and the power of community and its positive impacts.
One of Elise’s first experiences of running long distances was not one to behold, as during which, she was dubbed ‘The Crying Crayon’ after crying for 8 miles straight. She also attempted an ultramarathon but ended up crying in a graveyard and did not finish the race. Elise, it seemed, had a long way to go before she could run the 5000 miles she wanted to around Britain. Not a naturally talented runner, Elise started on her long and intensive 10-month training regime.
After completing her impressive and ambitious feat in August 2016, Elise began to share her life with her 13,000 Instagram followers, and is now an author, keynote speaker, freelance writer and runner. Her first book, Coasting: Running Around the Coast of Britain – Life, Love and (Very) Loose Plans was dubbed one of The Times Best Sports Books of 2021 and was long-listed for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award 2021. In true entrepreneurial spirit she is set to release her second book, A Guidebook of Car-Free Adventures.
Elise is devoted to helping and motivating others and has one main message: do not ever let your perception of your own ability stop you from doing anything, all that matters is that you are willing to give it a go. Elise does not shy away from the ugly details in her talks, everyone has bad days, and you cannot expect anyone to be perfect, no matter how much you have accomplished. Now an experienced speaker, Elise is able to tailor her talks to the needs of the organisation, having spoken to organisations such as Vita Mojo, HelloFresh, Hg Capital, The National Running Show, Royal Scottish Geographical Society, and several schools, to name a few. Do not miss your chance to hire Elise today.
Elise Downing is regularly booked to engage audiences at events, read their latest feedback below:
“We were delighted that Elise agreed to be involved in the Run Rabbit Trail Festival where she spoke about her running adventures. She really threw herself into the spirit of things and was engaging and funny. We can’t recommend her highly enough.”
“Elise came to The Ministry of Clean to share her incredible story with the team. Elise was very relatable, extremely engaging and told her story in a very humorous way. We loved it! The office have since set up a weekly run club having felt so motivated by Elise to get out and run.”
“Elise is a charismatic, engaging and witty speaker. At the National Running Show 2018, Elise was one of our most popular speakers and a real draw for visitors. She is a joy to work with.”
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