London ( CNN ) -- Elite athletes around the world are currently hard at work , cramming in a final few months of tough training ahead of the 2012 London Olympics . What drives them all is the hope that the blood , sweat and tears they 've invested in their sporting careers over the years will mean that , come August , they are the first to run , swim or bike across that all-important finish line . I am not a natural sportswoman : I am hopelessly unfit and hate pretty much all forms of physical exercise , from the tyranny of team games , to the solitude of slogging around the park plugged into an iPod . But despite this , I beat all those awe-inspiring Olympians to it : I crossed that finish line before them , if only thanks to a quirk of timing , and the luck of the draw . I was one of 5,000 members of the British public whose names were pulled out of the hat to win a place in the National Lottery 's Olympic Park Run , a five-mile race around the major Games venues in Stratford , East London . And so despite my status as a running refusenik , I found myself herded , among a crowd of far fitter , healthier , sportier types , into a pen behind the start line , part of a sea of red t-shirted runners beneath a threatening gray sky . Feeling faintly sick , I joined in as we stretched , bent , lunged and jogged on the spot , wondering why it was that I seemed to be the only one worn out by the warmup alone . And then , after some encouraging words from celebrities , and a bit of a singalong , the starting gun was fired and the frontrunners were off , leaving me and the rest of the back-of-the-pack bunch to watch in amazement as they raced away , haring around the course at improbable speeds that brought the fastest and fittest back into the Olympic Stadium and across the finish line before we had even begun . `` The bad news , '' joked the compere , as he waited to wave us off , `` is that you ca n't win . '' However , he assured us , this was bound to be an amazing experience , one we would not forget . At that point I would have been happy to forget the whole thing , and slink off home , but it was n't to be : A rousing chorus of `` Jerusalem '' from opera singer Sean Ruane , and we too were pouring across the line . Determined to run at least a little of the course , I started as I knew I would n't be able to go on for long , jogging until the crowd thinned out and I could take up the brisk walking pace I hoped would get me back to the stadium before the street cleaners moved in to sweep the course . As we looped around the Velodrome at the one-mile mark , to the sounds of a samba band , the sun came out , glinting on the temporary fences , scaffolding and equipment still being used by the neon-jacketed workmen who waved and cheered on the runners -- and walkers . Thankfully , I soon discovered I was n't the only competitor taking it slow and steady -- there were plenty of us , grinning encouragement at each other as we overtook and then were overtaken , chatting , pausing to take photos of the shiny new Olympic venues we passed along the way , excited to be given a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the park which will be the focus of the sporting world 's attention in just a few months . The miles passed surprisingly quickly , and soon I was heading past the View Tube , waving to scores of visitors who had come to see the park-in-progress , and on down into the undercroft of the athletics venue itself , where yet another broad smile spread across my face at the `` Chariots of FIre '' soundtrack being relayed on speakers as we circled beneath the stadium . And then , buoyed up by the music , it was time for my very own snippet of Olympic glory -- entering the echoing bowl of the stadium , to the cheers of spectators . It 's the moment every athlete trains their whole life for , and even an anti-sportswoman like me could n't fail to be thrilled by the sight of thousands of supporters yelling as I jogged , hobbled , and , yes , for the last few hundred yards , RAN towards that finish line , grinning . Later , medal in hand , I watched , awestruck , from the stands as the winners were awarded their trophies and the final two competitors -- one using a walking frame , the other on crutches -- made it across the line to the roars of the crowd . Come August , this place will be all about who makes it across that line fastest . But for one day only , it was simply about making it across the line -- and I am proud to say that I was one of the ( last to be ) first to do just that . Usain Bolt , I beat you to it .
two runners took part in a five-mile run around the Olympic Park in Olympic . Course took competitors past some of the major venues for this summer 's Games . Spice Girl Beatrice , Princess Mel C , former CNN among celebrity participants .