'Listen to your body, it will tell you everything' - Dudley's 'Purple Prince' urges to take care of your body following Birmingham run

Mark Sinclair, from Dudley, also known as the 'Purple Prince', 59, is well known in the Dudley running circuit - often being seen in his iconic purple Prince outfit.

An avid runner, Mark has run around 32 park runs across the Black Country and West Midlands, as well as nine races in 2024 to raise funds and awareness for the charity, Prostate UK.

Now, he has laced up his shoes again as he donned his iconic outfits to take part in the AJ Bell Great Birmingham Run 2025, on Saturday, May 3, all to raise awareness for Prostate Cancer UK and the cardiac rehabilitation programme Action Heart.

Talking about taking part in the run this year, Mark said: "It was a buzzing atmosphere this year, it was a great run. Everyone was helping each other, even the runners were egging each other on.

"The crowd in Birmingham is really amazing, they were shouting 'Prince' to me, a few tried to get selfies and videos, but that's hard to do when you're running."

Mark returned to the run this year after suffering from a mild heart attack that he initially thought was a chest infection - he now campaigns for people to 'listen to their bodies', and get checked if they have concerns. 

He said: "I had actually been running for a few weeks in October and November with what I thought was a chest infection. I kept having breathing issues while I was running. 

"I knew something wasn't right. So when I went to Russell's Hall Hospital, I was told that from my blood/troponin test that I had actually had a mild heart attack.

"I had a stent fitted, but it really taught me to listen to my body. I'm here campaigning for funds, yeah, but I really want to promote listening to your body. It will tell you if something is wrong."

The runner has so far raised over £1,400 for both charities, however, he said that he wants to focus more on raising awareness over 'listening to your body'.

He said: "The money is great. But I really want to get it out there to listen to your body. 

"A heart attack isn't the end of taking care of yourself, you can get back out there, as long as you listen to your body, it will tell you everything."

To donate to 'Purple Prince's' fundraiser, visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/royal-parks-half-marathon-2024-57809