I’ve just got back from Chicago – I went there to run the marathon. It’s a brilliant race, if you’re a runner or you’ve got a desire to run a marathon, then Chicago would have to be one of the world’s great internationals.

It’s incredibly well organised, it winds you through some of the most beautiful parts of the city, but what really makes this race, I think, is the 1.5 million spectators who line the streets.

The Americans know how to put on an event, but they also know how to own it and how to support it too. The entire city gets right behind the Chicago marathon, and for the full 42 kilometres they’re cheering you along.

I went with a team of kiwis, we all run together at get running, and our coach Gaz Brown printed our names on our shirts - so I had Rachel on the front, and New Zealand on the back. And that was a bit of a master stroke because for 42 kilometres people were calling out my name.

Gaz had coach written across his shirt and he ran with me for a while, and people were yelling, "Go Rachel, go coach!"

Or, "Keep going Rachel, you're killing this!" I'm not sure I was, to be fair. I think I was probably closer to killing myself. But I loved the support.

Some of the signs that spectators and supporters were holding up, were brilliant.

One said, "If Trump can run for president, you can sure as hell run 26 miles".

And another one - "You're running better than the senate is right now".

One of my favourites, I laughed out loud, was a woman standing on the side of the road with a baby in a pushchair in front of her, and her sign said, "You think this hurts? This doesn't hurt. Childbirth hurts".

Towards the end of the race, an African-American woman had positioned herself not far from the finish line, and I don't know whether she runs a boot camp, or perhaps she's part of the military, but she was awesome. You're in the hurt locker at that point, desperately looking for the finish line, and she was yelling, "You did not come here to quit. You are not a quitter!"

And let me tell you, when she was yelling at you, trust me, you were never going to stop.

Another sign that I loved - "If Britney Spears made it through to 2016, you can make it through 26 miles".

Right at the end, the spectators are standing 15 or 20 deep. It's quite incredible. And they're holding up signs saying "Congratulations, you've made it. All that effort for a free banana".

And it's true. You get a free banana at the end, you get water, you get electrolytes, they wrap a foil cape around your shoulder. And there are rows of medics who are there to hold your together after you cross the line. It's just such an incredibly well-organised event.

And then you walk back to your hotel, that was a kilometre or two, and people are out and about shopping and everyone's congratulating you. "Mam, did you just run the marathon?" And I'd reply that I had, and they'd say, "well congratulations. Thank you for coming to our beautiful city. Now you have a good day".

So whatever you think about the Americans, they know how to stage and own a big event. They know how to get behind a major sporting occasion. The race itself, is brilliant - but for me, it was the locals who made it. And next time I'm sideline at an event here, I think I might just be a little more vocal.