A loved-up runner proposed to his stunned longtime girlfriend just before they both completed a marathon together in personal best times.<br /><br />Nervous Niall West, 27, ran 26 miles with the engagement ring in his shorts before getting down on one knee and popping the question to Beth Miller, 28.<br /><br />And the newly betrothed couple then jogged the final few yards of the race arm in arm before crossing the finish line in a time of 4 hours and 38 minutes.<br /><br />Niall, who decided to ask Beth to marry him in December last year, said his heart was beating “a million miles an hour” during the final mile of the Manchester Marathon.<br /><br />But when he spotted his friends and family, he feigned an injury and dragged Beth over to them before dropping down to the ground and presenting her with a ring.<br /><br />He said: “In that last mile everything was hurting. I just kept on sort of crying as I was envisaging what was coming.<br /><br />“My heart was beating at a million miles an hour. I then saw my mum and my dad and friends and dragged Beth over. The rest was history.<br /><br />“I knew we were ahead of time and Beth was going to beat her personal best anyway. It was my first marathon, so I was just happy to finish.”<br /><br />Stunned Beth said she had “absolutely no idea” Niall was about to present her with an engagement ring and said the proposal was something she would “never forget”.<br /><br />She said: “It completely threw me off. His sister is getting married next month, and he had told me, ‘Just to manage expectations, I’m not going to do it this year.’<br /><br />“I’d seen his friends and family, and I thought maybe his ankle was hurting. I thought: ‘What are you doing? We’re just about to cross the finish line?<br /><br />“I didn’t know if I was going to have a heart attack or pass out. But it’s just been amazing. It’s something I’ll never forget. It was such a special time.”<br /><br />Niall from Bolton, Gtr Manchester, who works in Intellectual property law, said he had decided to pop the question after chatting to his dad late last year.<br /><br />He then spent months worrying about how the big day would go and even purchased special shorts the day before the race so his ring would be safe.<br /><br />He said: “It’s probably been the most nerve-wracking few months of my life.<br /> <br />“I decided I was going to pop the quest back in December. I was away with my dad and we were discussing the future and life. And I said ‘I’m ready, I’m going to do it.’<br /><br />“Beth had no annual leave left, so I thought ‘I can’t whisk her away.’ And I didn’t think she’d be happy if I did it on the couch watching Coronation Street.<br /><br />“I knew we were running the marathon together, and I thought ‘Wow, what a great idea.’<br /><br />“It’s completely out of my comfort zone. I don’t like large crowds or attention or a lot of people looking at me. But I knew Beth would be completely surprised and love it.<br /><br />He added: “I bought new shorts just so I had some with a zip pocket on the front. I got such bad back just because I was holding my pocket all the way around.”
