Inspiring Leeds autistic athlete eyes more records in 2026 after milestone Woodhouse Moor parkrun on New Year's Day

Matthew Akpan, 37, from Cross Gates, has become a familiar face to many at the parkrun events that take place at Woodhouse Moor every week.

He has also become an inspiration to many having pushed himself to smash Guinness World Records, including as the fastest person to ever have run a marathon while dressed as a wrestler.

Having started 2026 in a positive way, he is now looking at filling the next 12 months with other milestones and positive activities, including beating the record time for a marathon race by a disabled person.

Matthew, who was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome in 2013, spoke about how big an impact the parkrun has had on him, having been running and volunteering at the Saturday morning sessions on a frequent basis since 2008.

On why it has become such an integral part of his life, Matthew said: “I think the way it encourages you mentally and physically is you are always going to feel you have achieved something after doing it. Even if you don’t feel like it or you are doing it for the first time you are always going to have improved yourself by doing a 5km.

“You never know who you might meet. I would say to anyone just give it a go.”

The events have swelled in popularity over the 17 years and on New Years Day nearly 500 keen runners took part. The day had a “great atmosphere” said Matthew, who went at a slower pace than usual to make the most of the day - finishing with a time of 20.39.

He said that there was constant well wishes and greetings from others in the parkrun community that he has met over the years. The event helped him get into running in the first place and he has ran a remarkable average time of 17 and a half minutes across his 400 parkrun participations.

“I want to prove that you don’t have to be a great athlete to to maintain a great average.”

Matthew has also been in the volunteering side of the events in recent years, with over 100 volunteering credits to his name from times he has spent marshalling runners or setting out and collecting in the equipment.

He said: “It’s a big achievement to have given back that amount. I feel better doing the volunteering than running.”

Asked what his favourite memories of parkruns from over the years are, Matthew said: “It’s always the milestones. The first time I did a race in sub 18 minutes then spurred me on to keep my time under 18 minutes from then.

“Then the first time I ran under 17 minutes was when the Olympian Laura Weightman was taking part and I finished before her which I couldn’t believe.

“Those two moments defined my level of running.”

As on New Year’s Day, Matthew also revealed shout outs from the organisers when running his 250th run; which adds to his feeling of kinship and community spirit with the others taking part.

“Now I’m quite social but back when I started it was more about the running. It was a bit of a shock for them to announce it and then it became more about meeting people.”

Matthew said that in 2026 he hopes to break the record for the time ran by a disabled person when he runs the London Marathon, for which he will be raising money for the National Autistic Society.

The parkruns at Woodhouse Moor are held every Saturday and start at 9am. For more information visit the website.