With all the attention focused on Mo Farah and his attempts to win his first full marathon, the achievements of Steve Way went largely unnoticed on Sunday.

Even the man carrying a fridge on his back, Tony Phoenix-Morrison from Tyne and Wear, got more publicity than Way during the Virgin Money London Marathon.

For the record, Way finished 15th and was the third British man over the line behind Farah and Chris Thompson. So what? Well, Way’s story should act as an inspiration to anyone who thinks that running 26.2 miles is beyond them.

A little over six years ago, Way, from Bournemouth, weighed in at 16.5 stones and was a heavy smoker and finishing a marathon was nowhere near the top of this priority list.

Now, Sunday’s marathon has propelled him on to the international scene as his time of 2.16.27 means that Way has ducked under the magical two hour 17 mark for qualification for the Great Britain team for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this summer.

Way’s secret for success was simple achieving his goals “over a period of three years by getting off my backside, losing around five stone in weight and giving up smoking”.

London Marathon 2014 14 show all London Marathon 2014 1/14 London Marathon 2014 Mo Farah begins his marathon debut on the start line of the 2014 London Marathon 2/14 London Marathon 2014 Mo Farah gets himself into the right frame of mind on the start line for the 26.2 mile course 3/14 London Marathon 2014 Wilson Kipsang won the men's London Marathon in a new unofficial course record of two hours, four minutes and 27 seconds 4/14 London Marathon 2014 Hundreds of runners start the mass race 5/14 London Marathon 2014 TV presenter Charlie Webster before the race 6/14 London Marathon 2014 Edna Kiplagat crosses the finish line to win the women's elite race 7/14 London Marathon 2014 Amy Willerton poses for photographs ahead of the Virgin Money London Marathon 8/14 London Marathon 2014 Game of Thrones actress Natalie Dormer lunges in her pre-race warm-up 9/14 London Marathon 2014 The Elite Wheelchair Men's field passes the Houses of Parliament 10/14 London Marathon 2014 Tony Phoenix-Morrison carries a fridge as he runs the Virgin Money London Marathon 11/14 London Marathon 2014 Workmen make final preparations around gardens along The Mall 12/14 London Marathon 2014 Pedestrians near the Mall yesterday as final preparations for the race were being finished 13/14 London Marathon 2014 Officials mark up the ground ahead of today's race 14/14 London Marathon 2014 Mo Farah does a 'flying Mobot' for photographers yesterday ahead of the race 1/14 London Marathon 2014 Mo Farah begins his marathon debut on the start line of the 2014 London Marathon 2/14 London Marathon 2014 Mo Farah gets himself into the right frame of mind on the start line for the 26.2 mile course 3/14 London Marathon 2014 Wilson Kipsang won the men's London Marathon in a new unofficial course record of two hours, four minutes and 27 seconds 4/14 London Marathon 2014 Hundreds of runners start the mass race 5/14 London Marathon 2014 TV presenter Charlie Webster before the race 6/14 London Marathon 2014 Edna Kiplagat crosses the finish line to win the women's elite race 7/14 London Marathon 2014 Amy Willerton poses for photographs ahead of the Virgin Money London Marathon 8/14 London Marathon 2014 Game of Thrones actress Natalie Dormer lunges in her pre-race warm-up 9/14 London Marathon 2014 The Elite Wheelchair Men's field passes the Houses of Parliament 10/14 London Marathon 2014 Tony Phoenix-Morrison carries a fridge as he runs the Virgin Money London Marathon 11/14 London Marathon 2014 Workmen make final preparations around gardens along The Mall 12/14 London Marathon 2014 Pedestrians near the Mall yesterday as final preparations for the race were being finished 13/14 London Marathon 2014 Officials mark up the ground ahead of today's race 14/14 London Marathon 2014 Mo Farah does a 'flying Mobot' for photographers yesterday ahead of the race

Despite improving his London Marathon best from 2:35:26 in 2008 to 2:19:04 in Olympic year, Way was still so unheralded that he spent the night before Sunday’s race in his camper van in his cousin Helen’s drive in Orpington.

“I wasn’t meant to be racing so no splashing out on big city hotels,” he explained.

“After a slightly slow start getting caught up in traffic, I quickly made my way up through the field where I could see the official 2:15 pacer who already had a big group behind him including some very familiar faces. This included my long time VLM [Virgin Money London Marathon] sparring partner John Gilbert.

“I’ve never sat in a group with an official pacer at the front and it makes a huge difference not having to worry about “doing your bit” at the front. All I had to concern myself that I was biting off more than I could chew at this pace, the benefits of being in such a good group meant I was damn sure going to try!”

Way broke 32 minutes for the first 10km, with the second 10km coming in at 31:55 before reaching halfway in 67:21.

“If it wasn’t for the fact I felt great at this stage I would have been concerned that I was half-way splitting in the marathon with a time I have struggled to hit for a half-marathon recently,” he added.

With the wind picking up at 18 miles, Way was concerned he may struggle when he reached 20 miles but: “I actually still felt strong and as I knew the pacer was planning on stopping at 20 miles and the only other passenger left on the train was John, I thought this was as good a time as any to go it alone.

“So the next 7-8 miles of the race was all about just me, my thoughts, dreams ……. and the wind! I would be lying if I said I was in my usual pain box at this stage. I found myself in control and although I had to focus on my effort levels to keep a good pace.”

And when he passed Olympian Scott Overall at 24 miles, Way realised he might just be about to run his greatest race.

“Mo Farah . . . Chris Thompson . . . Steve “WHO?” Way. This gave me a real buzz and allowed me to pick the pace back up a little for the final mile,” said Way, on hearing his position over the PA system.

“The 800m sign appeared just under 2:14 which with a bit of simple maths told me I could six minute/mile pace and still get under 2:17 for the Commonwealths and Euro Championships qualifier of 2:17 – fairytale s**t!

“The Mall was all mine without another soul in sight and I was going to make the most of it. A couple of arm raises to the crowd and the volume control went up a few notches.”

Read Steve Way’s full blog at steveway.co.uk