Mark Guven joined the Highbury Fields running club

EVERY Saturday morning, rain or shine, he ran five laps around Highbury Fields and waited at the finish line to cheer the others on.

Now a bench will be placed there in memory of Parkrun legend Mark Guven, who has died from cancer aged 52.

Mark joined the Highbury Fields run club in 2012 and quickly became a familiar face at the weekly meets.

A “larger than life” character, he encouraged fellow runners to go for personal bests and built lasting friendships along the way.

Among them was Danny Olive, who met Mark in those early days when they were both on the cusp of 40 and took up running to keep fit.

“He had a magnetic personality – he was one of those people you come across in life who inspires everybody else to be friendly, supportive and encouraging,” Mr Olive told the Tribune, adding: “I made a lot of new friends at Parkrun and so did Mark – he was the catalyst for a whole friendship group coming together, many of whom will be at his funeral. He made friends everywhere he went – he was this larger than life character whose enthusiasm made other people’s lives better.”

Mark was born in Istanbul in 1973 and moved to London for university.

He left behind a finance career in the city to set up two market stalls in Covent Garden – a sweet shop and a hat shop – together with his wife, Didem. The pair later moved to Kent after many years in Islington.

Mark returned to Istanbul for cancer treatment at the end of his life, where his 93-year-old mother attended to him every day in hospital and Mr Olive visited in his final days.

He told how Mark’s mother’s surname, translated into English, means “iron lineage” – apt for a woman who holds the Highbury Fields Parkrun record in the over-80s category.

Mark’s friends are fundraising for his memorial bench, which will sit at the finish line of the Parkrun route with the inscription: “In loving memory of Highbury Fields parkrunner and local legend Mark Guven (1973-2025), Forever remembered by all who knew him, ran with him, and were lifted by his boundless enthusiasm”.

Mr Olive said: “If someone lives on in the memories of others, they haven’t entirely gone.

“Mark was always cheering other people on, so it feels fitting to put the bench there, where everybody is doing their sprint finish. You can imagine him watching over them.”

He added: “His energy, passion and good will for people around him are what I’ll miss the most.”

Mark is survived by friends and family including his wife, Didem, and four-year-old daughter, Chloe.

Contributions to Mark’s memorial bench can be made at: www.gofundme.com/f/mark-guven