Mikkelsen proud
of worst result

Just as well really that he was running in the Oslo Marathon at home in Norway against 1924 other people - and that it was his first attempt. In the end he beat his target time of three and three-quarter hours by completing the 26-mile course in 3h38m55s.

So that’s 687th overall and 194th in the 23-34 year-old male runner class then, which just goes to show that there are an awful lot of very fit people in Norway.

Rather than whimpering with pain at the end of it though, the 23-year-old Volkswagen Motorsport star actually claimed that he enjoyed himself, one reason why some people think that rally drivers need their heads examining.

“Running my first marathon was a really great experience,” said Mikkelsen, a regular in this year’s FIA World Rally Championship. “I was very happy with my time: it was not so bad actually...”

On Rallye de France Alsace this week, Mikkelsen is hoping for a somewhat better overall result at the wheel of the Volkswagen Motorsport Skoda Fabia S2000. So far this year his best is an impressive seventh overall on ADAC Rallye Deutschland.

“I’m pretty glad now to swap my running shoes for fireproof shoes,” admitted Mikkelsen, who is 16th overall following Thursday evening’s Strasbourg street stage. “But we’ve got a very competitive field again, so it’s going to be just as difficult as running the marathon, I’m sure. The weather was pretty bad last year, so let’s hope for better things this time.”

Mikkelsen’s wish seems unlikely to be answered: one forecast is for intermittent rain and cool temperatures throughout the weekend.