Running Through History in Berlin

Editor’s note: This article is brought to you by On. As well as helping Cheeky Run Club reach the Berlin Marathon in September, they’re also working with the Cheeky gang and a host of Melbourne run crews for the return of On Track Nights: Zátopek:10 on Saturday 14 December.

Since its launch in January, popular podcast and community Cheeky Run Club has had quite an impact, in its Melbourne hometown and far beyond, by encouraging and nurturing everyday runners. So when Swiss sports brand On sought out hosts Phoebe Pincus and Anna Coldham to explore a partnership, it seemed like perfect timing – the pair had already shared their ambition to run the Berlin Marathon, a dream Phoebe had held for nearly a decade.

That dream would evolve into something bigger. When On and the duo met, the brand saw something compelling in the podcast‘s mission of making running more accessible. Together, they decided to build on the concept that the marathon is a team sport.

This collaborative spirit quickly took form. On supported Cheeky Run Club‘s thriving Strava community – now 3,850 members strong – by providing prizes for answers to their weekly “Brains Trust” questions about training and racing. “Most Strava groups just get spam,” Phoebe says. “We saw an opportunity to create a real community.”

The partnership took Phoebe and Anna to On’s headquarters in Zurich, where they were treated not as influencers but as valued collaborators. “They showed us around, introduced us to the team, let us interview their head of community,” Phoebe says. Unfortunately, visiting the Swiss city would be the end of Anna’s trip; carrying an injury and unable to run in Berlin, she headed home.

Phoebe arrived in Berlin on a Tuesday, already adjusted to European time after a few weeks abroad. She based herself in Prenzlauer Berg, a neighbourhood she likens to Melbourne’s Fitzroy, with its amazing food scene and distinctive vibe. “We wanted to get a feel for Berlin before the race itself,” she says. On Friday, she and her assembled group of running friends moved closer to the Brandenburg Gate, right in the thick of the historical centre.

Race week brings its own electricity as runners descend on Berlin. “You get the sense the runners are overtaking the city,” Phoebe says. She describes seeing large tour groups from different countries doing shakeout runs together, leaders with national flags held high, followed by dozens of runners in matching t-shirts. The day before the race, she joined On’s community shakeout – “one of my highlights of the whole weekend.”

Another high point was collecting race bibs from the buzzing expo in the old Tempelhof Airport. The former airport has been preserved exactly as it was when it closed, complete with check-in desks and baggage carousels. “It’s such an iconic venue,” Phoebe says. “That’s when it all started to feel really real. There are so many people there, but it was so efficient. You’re just feeding off everyone’s energy.”

“One of the best decisions we made was to get around almost exclusively on Lime bikes and scooters. And it was just such an amazing way to get a feel for the city. Everything is pretty close and accessible. It was much easier than relying on public transport, which is packed.”

To prepare for race day, Phoebe and her friends used ChatGPT to create a guide to the historical landmarks they‘d pass during the marathon. “No matter how much I was struggling in the race, I had in my mind that in two kilometres I’d get to see this part of Berlin, or run through that historic area,” she says. “You feel like you‘re running through history.”

The 9am start time (later than many southern hemisphere races) brought its own challenges. “I’ve never been to a race of this scale before,” Phoebe says. The start area was chaotic, with huge queues for bathrooms, and with many people opting to go in the bushes – Phoebe recommends either making sure you won’t need the portaloos or allowing a full 45 minutes to queue. Meanwhile, thousands of runners were trying to find their correct starting positions.

While Berlin seeds runners into four waves based on previous marathon times, first-timers are automatically placed in the last wave regardless of ability. Combined with busy starting corrals, this can make it difficult to find and stick with the right pace group.

For six months leading up to the race, Phoebe had been part of a WhatsApp group with friends from around the world – Melbourne mates plus others from London and Madrid – all training for the Berlin Marathon. “We’d be talking about our training and supporting each other,” she says. “They were some of my biggest inspirations.”

“I didn‘t run with any group the entire time,” Phoebe says. “I was either getting overtaken or I was overtaking people. I saw the three-hour pace group, and there were only about ten people in it – everyone else who wanted to run that pace obviously hadn’t been able to find them at the start … I had friends who were going for 2:50 who started with people who were running four hours. And so they spent the first 25 kilometres trying to push through crowds of people.”

Her main advice? “Get there much earlier than you think you need to, especially if you want to start with a pace group – which you absolutely should. Running with 50,000 people is simultaneously the most exhilarating, energising thing and also can make things so challenging if you‘re not near people running the same pace as you.”

Despite the initial chaos, the race itself was blessed with perfect conditions: eight degrees Celsius (46°F), partly cloudy, zero wind. The course proved as flat and fast as advertised, with incredible crowd support the whole way. “People partying, amazing music, people singing – you can tell it’s such an important thing in the city.”

While she found parts of the race challenging, the historic surroundings helped lift her spirits. “Even when I was in the absolute hurt locker and struggling, there was no time when I couldn’t lift myself out of that and think, ‘You’re in Berlin, you’re running through this incredible city where all this history happened.’”

For someone who completed her first marathon in 5.5 hours at Gold Coast a few years ago, to run 3:07 in Berlin shows remarkable progression. Phoebe credits getting a coach (she’s coached by Run Crew) and proper training for the improvement, though she’s quick to emphasise the importance of the community around her.

That ethos of accessibility and support carried through to Berlin. While she’d originally hoped for a new PB, having been sick during her build-up meant she approached the race with different expectations. “I just wanted to soak it up and enjoy it,” she says.

For others considering Berlin, Phoebe has some practical advice: arrive early to adjust and explore the city, study the course’s historical significance, and plan to stay afterwards to properly enjoy Berlin. “If you could plan an ideal trip, get in on Thursday, have a few quiet days leading up to the marathon, then have four or five days afterwards to fully explore.”

Most importantly, embrace what Phoebe and Cheeky Run Club discovered through their journey with On – that marathon running flourishes when treated as a team sport. Whether it’s connecting with accountability partners on WhatsApp, joining a run club or simply drawing energy from the 54,000 other participants on race day, the joy of running multiplies when shared.