Wyman Minks has never won a race in his life. In fact, he?s not come close.

But this doesn?t discourage the 40 year-old middle-distance runner in the least.

For Minks is a champion in his own right, having overcome great odds ? a previous life of despair, entangled in a vicious web of alcohol and substance abuse.

A born-again Christian, Minks has now been given a new lease on life along with a desire to return to competitive running.

?It was one day in March of last year when I had my last drink. It was a Friday night and I told my mate ?this is my last drink?,? he recalled.

?I said I was going to get a haircut and then take my daughter and surrender myself to Christ. And that?s exactly what I did.?

It was this new found faith which eventually put him back on the road.

?Running has always been in me from school days,? continued Minks, who attended Paget Primary and the former Robert Crawford Secondary School in Prospect.

?When I gave myself to Christ I decided to compete because I had never done so outside of school. I used to compete in track and field and cross-country in school but never when I left.?

Minks finished a highly creditable 35th in last year?s May 24 Marathon Derby in a field of more than 400 ? his first competitive race. Not bad for a 40 year-old.

?That was my first run and I?ve been running ever since,? he added. ?It just goes to show that nothing is impossible through the Lord. He has shown me that I can achieve things in life and shows others ? particularly young people ? that in life you might think certain things are fun. But as you get older you begin to realise that things change ? and that?s what happened to me.

?I grew tired of that old lifestyle . . . drinking and smoking and hanging out on the wall and doing stupidity. I just said to myself ?that?s it? and surrendered myself to Christ.?

A well-known fisherman and mason by trade, Minks isn?t ashamed of his past.

?I?ve been to the bottom of the barrel and had people talk about me.

?But that doesn?t bother me because I was living in a world some people are still living in today.

?I?ve now come out of that world and moved to a better place.?

And like most athletes, Minks has set himself a few personal goals.

?I?m trying to move into the top ten during this year?s May 24th race,? he said. ?I also want to put in some serious training.?

But it?s for those who might have made the wrong decisions in life that Minks is prepared to go the extra mile.

?I encourage any young person who is doing the wrong things in life to stop whatever they?re doing,? he said.

?Stop all of the madness and just allow the Lord to come into your life and give you a taste of what it is that he has in store for you.?