On Sunday, Oct. 2, junior Joe Adams will kick off his third marathon. For this race, Adams will run across the pond in London, England. 

The London Marathon will be Adams’ third world major marathon, after Boston and New York City. Adams wants to accomplish his goal of running the six world major marathons. With London being number three, Adams will be halfway to his six-star finisher medal with Abbott World Major Marathons. If he completes all six, Adams will be one of only a few thousand people to complete the world major races. After London, Adams’ eyes are on the Tokyo, Berlin and Chicago events. 

“This race gives me a chance to go abroad for a few days and check out London, which I’ve never been to before,” Adams said. “Marathons let me explore new places in the world and give me something to look forward to in my busy life.” 

Adams first began running in high school. After playing various sports, he settled on running in the spring of his freshman year. Though he hated the first practice and wanted to quit, he stuck with it. He ran throughout the rest of high school, and he was captain of both his cross country and winter/spring track teams. When COVID-19 hit his senior year, Adams never had the opportunity to have his “final race.” Though COVID-19 may have deterred Adam’s high school running career, it propelled the marathon-running journey he is on today.

“In April 2020, I felt so cooped up in my house during quarantine that I decided to run a half marathon in my backyard, which was 700 laps,” Adams said. “It was crazy. But I knew I wanted to run a real race, and in May 2021, I ran my first official half marathon in Portland, Maine – and somehow won the race. I got an email in June 2021 about an opportunity to run in the 50th NYC Marathon with the B+ Foundation, telling me they had one spot left. I thought, ‘An opportunity like this comes once in a lifetime. Why not?’ From then on, I trained, I ran in NYC, and I got addicted. Boston came next, and now I’m onto London.”

When asked why he runs marathons, Adams spoke about his desire to challenge himself and inspire others.

“I was in no way born a runner. Nobody in my family really ran a lot, so it took a ton of hard work to get to where I am in my running journey. After every race, I always tell people that anyone can run a marathon. I know that is hard to grasp and might seem cliché, but I truly mean it. I was once that kid that could barely finish a mile around my neighborhood and who hated running more than anything in the world. I hope one day, I inspire others to run marathons. I want to be that seventy year old guy you see running in your neighborhood like he’s twenty.  Imagine how cool it would be to be in shape when you’re old!” Adams said.

Running marathons is also a way for Adams to see the world, build memories, and do something both challenging and momentous while he is young.

“I was in no way born a runner,” Adams said. “Nobody in my family really ran a lot, so it took a ton of hard work to get to where I am in my running journey. After every race, I always tell people that anyone can run a marathon. I know that is hard to grasp and might seem cliché, but I truly mean it. I was once that kid that could barely finish a mile around my neighborhood and who hated running more than anything in the world. I hope one day, I inspire others to run marathons. I want to be that seventy year old guy you see running in your neighborhood like he’s 20. Imagine how cool it would be to be in shape when you’re old.” 

On a personal level, running helps Adams with his personal mental health at college. 

“Running allows me to clear my mind and give myself an hour every day to have to myself away from the hustle and bustle of Villanova life,” Adams said. “It has helped me clear my head and keep me on the right track, and I have come to rely on it, especially with everything else going on in my life.”

Beyond running marathons, Adams, who is a Communication major specializing in media production and journalism, pursues his passion for media and video-production on campus.

“I love making videos, and am the news director for Villanova Television this year,” Adams said. “I also am in the Social Justice Documentary class, and a week after London, I will be going to Kenya for two weeks to film a documentary with my class. That experience is one I am looking forward to a lot to expand my knowledge of social justice abroad. I am on the media team for NOVAdance, which is a ton of fun, and I also write for the opinion section of The Villanovan.”

Currently, Joe is working as a post production intern for PBS for its documentary series “FRONTLINE,” which he remarks has been an amazing experience. 

For this marathon, Adams is running for St. Michael’s Fellowship in London, an organization that helps disadvantaged children and families. The organization works directly with families to build confidence, skills and community. Adams is raising money for St. Michael’s Fellowship until race day. One can find the link to donate in his Instagram bio @joeadams_27.

To track Adams throughout the race, download the TCS London Marathon App and search for “Joe Adams” under the participant tracking section. Using his bib number 31831, one will see live updates for where he is along the course.