While thousands of runners focused on shaving seconds off their personal bests at the Melbourne Marathon, the true measure of triumph for the Malcomson family was the simple act of finishing together.
For Ross Malcomson, crossing the line wasn’t about running; it was about getting pushed the full course in a modified wheelchair by his twin sons, Trent and Kane, and his daughter’s partner, Caleb Plumridge.
Ross Malcomson with his sons and his daughter’s partner.Credit: Carolyn Webb
Ross, 68, who lives with Motor Neurone Disease (MND), was a keen footballer and swimmer in his youth.
He’d always dreamed of running a marathon, a dream he’d held since growing up in Frankston, the starting point of the very first Melbourne Marathon in 1978.
“I’m very proud of them,” Ross said of the three men. “They’re such a determined lot.”
The family, from Port Melbourne, raised more than $56,000 for the charity MND Victoria, completely smashing their original goal of $450. “The generosity shown has been incredible,” Trent said.
The Malcomson family was just one inspiring story among a record-breaking 50,000 runners and walkers who took over the city on Sunday.
For John Dobson, the Melbourne Marathon isn’t a race so much as an annual ritual.
At 74, the Eltham local has run the full distance every year since the event’s inception in 1978, a feat he manages despite being a cancer survivor who suffers from osteoarthritis.
“In years gone by, I was worrying about what time I’d do”, he says. For the past three years, the worry has been whether he could finish the race.
Wayne Thompson, John Dobson and David Foskey are training to run their 47th Melbourne Marathon. They are the only three people who have run every Melbourne Marathon since the event started in 1978Credit: Joe Armao
Dobson described how the arthritis “grinds you to a slow pace, but you just keep moving”.
On Sunday, he was fuelled by the sight of 12 relatives cheering on the sidelines, a group he felt he couldn’t disappoint.
Dobson did not let them down, crossing the finish line after 42.195km in 6 hours, 21 minutes and 36 seconds.
Jack Rayner and debutante Caitlin Adams win the marathon
In between those steps were plenty of cramps, even at the pointy end of the pack where Jack Rayner made it back-to-back victories in the marathon, finishing in 2:15.02.
He started cramping just over halfway through the event, but was saved by his support crew.
Jack Rayner crosses the line of the Melbourne Marathon in first place on Sunday.Credit: Jason South
“But luckily, I got my brother to stop and get some salty water, so I think that kind of saved me.”
In her debut at the marathon distance, Caitlin Adams took the victory in 2:30.26. She said she was waiting to hit the dreaded marathon ‘wall’, joking that the closing stages of the race were the “longest three kilometres that I have ever done”.
Caitlin Adams claimed the 2025 Melbourne Marathon victory in 2:30.26. Credit: Jackson Graham
For Sue Reid from Talgarno near Wodonga, even stepping foot on the 10km course on Sunday was a massive achievement.
After she fell off her horse and badly broke her leg in April last year, Reid – a nurse of 45 years – thought she might never run again.
“I feel great,” she said after finishing on Sunday. “It’s a real personal achievement. I was not smashing any times, but I made 10km and that’s a good thing... and I’m 64!”
At the half-marathon distance, Haftu Strintzos swapped his silver medal from last year for a gold, taking out the event in 1:02:31. Stealing back her women’s course record, Izzi Batt-Doyle clinched the half-marathon win in 1:08:54.
