Ramsey's marathon in memory of 'amazing' young boy

As it transpired, Wales missed out last month and, soon afterwards, Ramsey made the decision official.

"I hadn't played for the last few months, so it was a bit of a process, but I think it was the right time to call it," he says.

"I left every option open to try and make that World Cup squad. I knew that loads of things had to align for that to happen but, for me, it was 100% the right thing to try and leave that open for as long as I could.

"That would have been the perfect scenario, the fairytale ending - but you don't always get that. If I look back on my career as a whole, I can be pretty proud of myself and that's almost the fairytale in itself."

That was clear as soon as Ramsey announced his retirement.

Frustrating as the final few months of his career might have been, the warmth and sheer volume of tributes that met his retirement illustrated how highly he was regarded, not only by fans of Wales and his former clubs but by the wider footballing world.

"I was absolutely blown away," Ramsey says.

"Having not played for a few months, I thought it might be a bit of a quieter one, but it was really nice actually and quite touching.

"It just showed me really that I have had an impact in places I've been and with teams I've played for."

Figure caption,

Aaron Ramsey: The football life and times of retired Arsenal and Wales star

'We'll cross the finish line together'

Now his playing days are done, Ramsey is aiming to make it as a coach.

He has most of his qualifications and has already had a taste of senior management, having taken charge of his boyhood club Cardiff City for three games at the end of last season as they were relegated from the Championship.

Having since been a part of Wales head coach Craig Bellamy's staff in an unofficial capacity, Ramsey is being touted for a bright future.

"[I]100% want to go into coaching. That's something that really excites me," he says.

"I had that experience with Cardiff and loved it, even though the circumstances were difficult. I felt like I got a really good reaction from the team.

"I've been in the Welsh camps now with Bellers and his incredible staff as well, and I've worked with Cardiff's Under-18s.

"We'll just have to see which opportunities may arise soon and we'll go from there."

First, Ramsey has a marathon to run.

Ceri Menai-Davis, who has run the London Marathon before, reckons Ramsey has raised more than £25,000 for his charity – and that is before you count donations for Sunday's race.

They have been friends for more than a decade and Ramsey's shows of support for the charity – as well as his fundraising – include the butterfly symbol he used as a goal celebration during his career.

On Sunday, the most powerful reminder of Hugh's life will be his father's huge physical effort – and his son's shoes draped around his shoulders.

"He was the most amazing, brave, courageous young boy," Ceri says. "The reason I do marathons is, just before Hugh died, I stupidly put myself in for a marathon in 2021.

"I never thought I'd get in but I got in, started training for it and Hugh never got to see me run that marathon because I did it two weeks after he died, and we buried him the next day with my medal.

"Last year I carried a 22-kilo rucksack, which was the weight Hugh was when he passed away. That was to display what grief weighs on you as a parent.

"This year, with Hugh's shoes, he walked into hospital in these shoes and sadly never came out. I wanted him to cheer me on when I did it in 2021 but sadly he never did.

"I did Paris with his shoes. He never got to see Paris so I showed him the Eiffel Tower and we had a chat all the way round. In London, he'll be there with me on my shoulders and we'll cross the finish line together."

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