Goulburn Valley's Thomas Smyth has overcome serious adversity to achieve something incredible in New York.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
A piping-hot slice of New York pizza never tasted so good with a marathon medal draped around Thomas Smyth’s neck.
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The Goulburn Valley resident is fast becoming Shepparton’s marathon man as Smyth uses the vehicle of running and fitness to help build his mental fortitude following an accident in 2019.
Smyth spent three weeks in a coma and six months at Melbourne’s Epworth Hospital after he and his brother Darcy collided in their car with kangaroos on a country road.
The then 21-year-old sustained an acute brain injury, both his lungs collapsed, had a broken collar bone and hairline fractures throughout his head.
Across the six years that have passed since the accident and the gruelling continuous cycle of rehab sessions, Smyth has fallen in love with running and exercise.
Smyth made the 21-hour flight to the east coast of the United States in November to compete in the famous New York City Marathon.
He was eager to test his physical strength and mental grit along the 42.1km course that slithers through the city so nice they named it twice.
Smyth said the race was like nothing he had ever seen.
“The whole experience was incredible, nothing like it,” Smyth said.
“There was over 55,000 people running the damn thing.
“There was over two million supporters on the side of the streets.
“You know how at concerts they have mosh pits with those barrier fences? They had to have those exact same fences on the sidewalks so people didn’t run through.”
Having worked hard to save enough money for the long haul to the other side of the world, Smyth was steely focused on completing the marathon.
However, that didn't mean he couldn't enjoy some of the city's famous foods on the side.
“It’s New York City man, you have gotta eat the pizza,” he said.
Thomas Smyth's passion for running isn't going to die down anytime soon.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
The race in New York was Smyth’s second marathon, an incredible achievement given where has come from.
Shepparton’s plucky runner said his passion for fitness helped keep his mental health in check.
“As good as (running) is physically ... the mental side of doing it is indescribable how great it is,” he said.
“The routine, the discipline factor you know?
“Getting up and about, going for a run, going to the gym and then you can get on with the rest of your day.
“The whole mental side of it is a lot better than the physical side of it, I might be eight kilos lighter, but the mental side of it I feel I can cope with any situation there is.”
The events don’t stop for Smyth as his 2025 calendar is chock-a-block with races.
At the end of the year, he will compete in the Melbourne Marathon, but in the lead-up, he has plans to race a 5km in Geelong, a 10km in Ballarat and the Shepparton half-marathon as preparation.
Like everyone else, maintaining his fitness doesn’t completely dissolve Smyth’s poor days, but he knows his commitment to running only helps him get through those darker times.
“I have just as many bad days as anyone else, you just have to get on with it,” he said.
“I do have those days when I don’t want to do anything, hang the washing out, vacuum the house or everyday stuff.”
While plenty of people have helped Smyth along his journey from hospital bed to the New York City Marathon finish line, he said there was one person in particular who had been everything to him.
His mother Maria.
“My mother, my mother, she has been my rock ever since the beginning,” he said.
“She was in hospital with me every day and Jesus Christ I don’t know what she would have felt when I was up in the air.
“She stuck by me and forever grateful; I owe her my life.
“For her, I better keep going and I have a lot of people to make proud that are special to my heart.
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