Model Aliana King On Marathon Mission

December 18, 2025 | 0 Comments

Bermudian model Aliana King has set herself the challenge of completing all seven World Marathon Majors before she turns 30.

Ms King, 26, has already run three of the iconic races, completing the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in October 2024, the BMW Berlin Marathon in September and the TCS New York City Marathon in November.

The remaining races on her marathon quest are Tokyo, Boston, London and Sydney.

“I started running two years ago and fell in love with it early on,” King said.

“It took me 45 minutes to do my first 5k, but I built myself up by running every day.

“I’m a very goal-orientated person, so I decided to sign up for a race, the Bermuda Half-Marathon Derby, which has always been a dream of mine, last year.”

Her ambitions quickly expanded beyond local races.

“I then signed up for the Chicago Marathon, my first World Major, and when I finished, I made the goal to complete all seven,” King said.

Ms King, whose portfolio includes work with other brands such as Skims, Redken, L’Oréal, Syoss, Aveda, Garnier, and Maybelline, said running her maiden marathon in Chicago was a defining moment.

“There are big moments in life when you feel like you’re where you’re meant to be – that was one of the biggest feelings I had in that moment,” she said.

“My partner came and supported me, and I felt loved the entire way.

“I thought that when I’d finished, I’d never want to do it again, but I’d so much fun.

“The last two miles were a little rough!”

Her marathon times to date include 4hr 07min in Chicago, 4:15 in Berlin and 4:28 in New York.

“My goal was to go under four hours in Berlin,” she said “It was such a hot day though, and I wasn’t prepared for that – it was the hottest recorded day for the marathon.”

She added that the physical and mental demands of back-to-back majors in Berlin and New York were significant.

“Strava, a popular fitness app, saw my online content and asked me to run for them and offered me a New York bib in November.

“I was still recovering from Berlin when I got back to training. It was more mentally tough than anything,”

“It’s tough to get back on the horse and get going again after Berlin during the six-week gap.”

Ms King said the support she received in New York helped her through the race.

“All my friends were there to support me,” she said. “I recorded 26.7 miles because I was running back to hug people and say hi to everybody!

“New York is a tough course – so many hills and bridges. The elevation is one of the hardest of the World Majors.”

Balancing endurance running with a modelling career has also presented challenges.

“I had a modelling job booked after two of the marathons, which left me a little sore,” she said.

“I’m probably walking a little bit differently! The worst was when I’d done a 17-mile training run before a running campaign. I had to do lots of small sprints. I made it work”

The former Bermuda Institute student confirmed her marathon journey is far from over.

“I will be doing a major next year, which I will announce soon,” she added.