When Alice Horney lines up at the starting line of the Mammoth Marathon, she knows she won't be alone.

Not only will there be 999 other runners taking part in the May 15 event, but one of them will be her own dad, Nigel Horney, from Wymondham.

Alice, 31 and from Norwich, said Nigel had given her the motivation to tackle what will be her first marathon.

"He's 63 but he'll be ahead of me," she said. "He inspires me to keep going."

Norfolk's first full road race marathon since 1990 will cover 26.2 miles from Sea Palling to Sheringham High School, with runners setting off at 9.30am.

Many participants have also chosen to back a charity. Alice is fundraising for the Norwich International Youth Project, which supports young asylum seekers and refugees from around the world.

She said: "Aiding the continued support for young refugees and asylum seekers is what will keep me going through those mammoth miles.”

The course goes by some of Norfolk's most famous landmarks including Happisburgh Lighthouse and Cromer Pier, and thousands of people are expected to line the road to cheer on the runners.

North Norfolk District Council are organising the run, supported by the North Norfolk Beach Runners.

Clive Hedges, running club chairman, said: "Marathon running remains incredibly popular and to have this race in the calendar for 2022 is a real bonus.”

The race was originally going to happen in 2020, but several Covid-related false starts pushed the date back.

A half-marathon will go from Mundesley to Sheringham, also starting at 9.30am.

A section of Clink Road and Beach Road in Sea Palling will close at 9.10am and open again at 10am, but anyone who gets to Clink Road beforehand can park there for free to cheer on the runners.

There will also be free parking at Mundesley's Gold Park, and a section of Beach Road and Paston Road will be closed there.

Top runners will vie to set the first-ever record time for the course, but Alice - who is training to be a children's welfare practitioner - simply wants to cross the finish line.

"I'm just hoping to get through it," she said.