The team
Meet the people behind WMN RUN, who lead, create and champion change.
sorrell walsh
Co-founder and one of the leads of WMN RUN, Sorrell is a Mancunian living in Bristol with a love for people, moving, and all things Mother Nature. Sorrell is a strong believer in the value of movement, connection and positive change.
Dream race or challenge
The Bob Graham Round and a sub 2.45 marathon.
Favourite snack
Salt & vinegar McCoys, specifically a grab bag.
Your shero
My Mum.
Memorable WMN RUN moment
Race to the Stones 2015. Seeing an idea come to life and light up the ambitions and perspectives of so many women, as they brought together their personalities, diversity and power to the Ridgeway, was a moment that I’ll never ever forget.
Amelia ritchie
Co-captain Amelia had a quintessential Canadian childhood of ice hockey and snowboarding. When she moved to the UK in 2010, she took up running and dove head first into marathons and long distance events. She has ran marathons in Sierra Leone, to Ultra Marathons in the Swiss Alps. Amelia has been with WMN RUN since the start, in 2015 when the ladies came together to run Race to the Stones. In 2017, she started the Friday morning run and coffee ritual and has only missed a handful of Fridays since. It’s her favourite morning of each week!
Dream race or challenge
Mustang Trail Race in Nepal
Favourite snack
Anything combining peanut butter and dark chocolate
Your shero
Chrissie Wellington
Memorable WMN RUN moment
The chaos that ensued at the start line of the Lisbon half marathon on a dual carriageway in the middle of nowhere. I’ve never seen such a wild start line! The girls banded together and went with the flow. I will never forget our little group huddled together, all dawning our new sparkling white WMN RUN hologram tops!
cat simpson
Cat is Co-Founder of WMN RUN and a London-based runner with a penchant for particularly long races, and is currently training for a 24 hour event. When she’s not running, Cat is most likely to be found working (as a nurse) or sleeping.
Dream race or challenge
Spartathlon, a 153 mile non-stop race from Athens to Sparta, following in the footsteps of Greek messenger Pheidippides. It's the original ultra marathon.
Favourite snack
Probably pizza. Or donuts.
Your shero
Courtney Dauwalter, for being one of the best at the moment at super-long events. Also, my Mum.
Most memorable WMN RUN moment
WMN RUN 100; where it all started, where we filled the start line of Race to the Stones with women.
NIKKI GOFFE
Nikki is an Account Manager at a behavioural insights practise. She lives in Peckham and spends her evenings and weekends on the track prepping for her next race or in the kitchen recipe testing for her next Caribbean supper club.
Dream race or challenge
Tokyo Marathon
Favourite snack
Snickers
Your shero
Ah I have so many, but I would say my Mum for showing me that strength comes in many different forms and for allowing me to be my outspoken boisterous self.
Memorable WMN RUN moment
Running from Whitstable to Margate Jan 2019, at that point it was the longest I'd ever run and doing it with the WMNRUN crew really helped to boost my confidence.
NATALINA MANNI
Nat is Canadian born but has been living in London over 10 years now. Nat is constantly trying to balance her love of food with keeping fit. As someone who only picked up running in her adult life, she never thought she’d run a race, let alone any long distance races, triathlons or have the opportunity to run in other parts of the world. She admits that she’s probably the loudest one cheering at races and you’ll never have trouble finding her at a WMN RUN event.
Dream race or challenge
I know it’s cliché, but after 6 years of applying, London, please, London! If I don’t ever get that, I’d like to do the Ironman 70.3 in New Zealand. Racing around the set of Lord of the Rings doesn’t sound so bad!
Favourite snack
This is going to sound terrible, but peanut butter-preferably Pip n Nut with maple syrup (you can take the girl out of Canada…) with dark chocolate chips, straight from a spoon to my mouth. It’s the salty and sweet combination.
Your shero
At the moment, Jacinda Ardern. The NZ Prime Minister is the youngest head of government and only the second to ever give birth as an elected head. She champions same-sex marriage, fights for climate change issues, and has no problem bringing her baby Neve to a UN General Assembly.
Memorable WMN RUN moment
The retreat with Run. Namaste. Eat in Morocco. A lot of good chat, laughing until my cheeks hurt and learning to really let go on those downhill (mountain) runs- it felt freeing.
VICTORIA FORD
Victoria has been running with WMN RUN since 2016 when she read an article about Sorrell in a magazine given out on the tube and thought that it sounded like a cool group of ladies. Last year she led a team of eight ladies for The Speed Project – a 340 mile relay race from LA to Las Vegas!
Dream race or challenge
I don't know if I have one particular race or challenge that I would love to do... There are so many that take my fancy and my goals are always changing. I'd love to run a fast 5km sometime, and it would be cool to tick off all six marathon majors at some point in my life.
Favourite snack
I love a chocolate milk, post run!
Your shero
My sheroes are Serena Williams, Dina Asher Smith, and, closer to home, I take lots of encouragement and inspiration from the amazing ladies that I run with on a regular basis, who balance having a personal life/work life/training and everything else.
Memorable WMN RUN moment
Coming to my first ever WMN RUN session after watching London Marathon from my sofa and feeling inspired to get moving with other people. I felt so immediately welcomed and never looked back! Within six months I think I'd signed up for a marathon myself.
Isabelle Austin-Zimmerman
Isabelle is currently in her final year of a PhD in genetics. She grew up in Devon as a keen netball player, and took up running at uni after signing up to run a half marathon for charity with her Dad. She joined WMN RUN in 2017 and was inspired to try her first marathon quickly after. Since then, she has made lifelong friends with fellow WMN Runners and the weekly runs have become the highlight of her week!
Dream race or challenge
London Marathon! Also, I would love to run the West Highland Way over a couple days (inspired by a WMN Runner who did this last year!)
Favourite snack
Probably cherry Colin caterpillar sweets from M&S or homemade banana bread - I have a major sweet-tooth!
Your shero
My sisters and the rest of the WMN RUN team! Also, Dina Asher Smith and Jasmine Paris.
Memorable WMN Run moment
I think our trip to take part in a Breca swim-run race in the Lake District has to be top! It was amazing to do something as a team and to improve the male/female ratio of the event. The whole weekend was so fun, and the race itself was challenging but hilarious!
VICTORIA WADE
Vicki is a finance professional working at INTL FCStone where she manages the global team of non-banking client managers. Vicki grew up as a dancer and found running after moving to New York in her early twenties. She is most comfortable at half marathon distance but recently started running ultras where she is finding her groove! While living in Singapore Vicki also found triathlons and particularly enjoys wild swimming to mix up run training. Vicki has been running with WMN Run since 2017 and hasn't looked back!
Dream race or challenge
There are so many to dream of! I love trail running and being by the sea, so anything that combines the 2!
Favourite snack
Slightly controversial, but I love me a Percy Pig!
Your sheros
Jasmine Paris, Courtney Dauwalter and the WMN RUN gang!
Memorable WMN RUN moment
Watching the sunset over the Gower Peninsular and dancing the night away at Love Trails 2019.
SARAH FUNDERBURK
Sarah grew up in South Carolina, dreaming of being a dancer. Acknowledging her analytical side and love of the brain, she ended up at MIT studying Brain and Cognitive Science instead. Somewhere along the way, she discovered that her love of movement and being able to see measurable results was a perfect fit for running. When she grows up (i.e., turns 70), she is hoping to be a professional runner and world-record holder. Why not?
Dream race or challenge
Qualifying for the US Olympic Marathon Trials. Everyone needs a crazy moonshot goal. Running Western States would be pretty awesome too!
Favourite snack
I live for peanut butter
Your shero
Currently Sara Hall. We are lucky to have so many amazing women runners to look up to right now. My forever shero is my mom.
Memorable WMN RUN moment
Meeting fellow WMN Runners at 4am at Tower Bridge the morning of the London Marathon to run half of the route in reverse, and then spending the rest of the day with the crew shouting for our WMN Runners running the real marathon.
ELLIE MANN
Ellie has lived in London for more than 10 years and works within the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry.
She has spent her life finding movement in various forms from ballet, athletics, swimming or field hockey. After sustaining a knee injury that required surgery in 2015, Ellie discovered running on her road to recovery and hasn’t looked back since!
Dream race or challenge
Despite living in London for more than 10 years, I have yet to run the London marathon. It is always so much fun cheering the other runners on the day, and I hope that one day I get the chance to run this amazing race!
Favourite snack
Most flavours of crisps… unless it is just salted in which case it needs some kind of dip to accompany.
Your shero
There are so many amazing women doing special things in running and sport, but Allyson Felix and Jessica Ennis would sit high on my list. Along with all the amazing WMN runners who show up each week to share their time running with me!
Memorable WMN RUN moment
A couple of years ago, International Women’s Day landed on a Friday. We kicked the day off with a morning run along the Thames with the sun rising. Being bathed in golden light was the perfect start to the day and a beautiful way to celebrate with such a wonderful group of people. It was a big reminder there is hope for a future of equal gender representation in running and sport more generally.
EMILY SHANNON
Emily works as Senior CRM Manager for an asset management consultancy firm. Originally from Bath, Emily is now living in East London. Emily has been running with WMN run since 2018 and loves the community vibe and the confidence it gives her to take on new and exciting challenges.
Dream race
I had always dreamed of running London marathon, but it had always seemed like a bit of a pipe dream, but WMN run inspired me and gave me the confidence that I could do it. It still is one of the best days of my life!
Favourite snack
Banana bread...I'm always hunting it out as a post run snack. Soreen is also another popular snack among WMN runners!
Your hero
I'm always following and influenced by athletes such as Katerina Johnson-Thompson, Jessica Ennis-Hill, but closer to home it's fellow WMN runners who are always achieving things to inspire me.
Memorable WMN RUN moment
My first run with WMN RUN, but also the first year we went to Love Trails Festival, it was such good fun.
LIZ ELDER
Liz works in communications and lives in South East London, and you’ll often find her out enjoying the peace and quiet of an early morning run.
Your dream race/ challenge
Since learning what an ultra marathon was, and seeing women like Jasmine Paris and Courtney Dauwalter breaking records, I’ve always loved the idea of being able to say I am an ultra runner. Watch this space!
Favourite snack
I love anything coffee and anything chocolate. I am currently obsessed with SiS Tiramisu energy bakes - a mid run game changer.
Your hero
I continue to be inspired by the dedication and perseverance of the wmnrun team who I’ve got to know – whether they are conquering ultra marathons, rebuilding from injuries or starting families
Memorable WMN RUN moment
Seeing the WMN RUN cheer squad at mile 23 of London Marathon was such a boost.
