Hours after the last runners had crossed the line, the crowds had gone home and the litter cleared away, one solitary figure was still doggedly finishing the 25th London Marathon.

Brave Clare Forbes, who lost both legs to meningitis in 2001, was determined to finish the course despite the pain and exhaustion.

She repeatedly had to take her prosthetic limbs off to try to prevent blisters but as the day wore on, the heat grew more intense and so did the pressure on her hip. She told The Argus as she reached her 24th mile: "I've got two more miles and my hip is in agony."

Finally Clare, 21, of Flamsteed Heights, Broadfield in Crawley, finally crossed the line at 1.10pm yesterday after 19hrs and ten mins on the road and two hours sleep.

The welcome she received was on a par with that of Paula Radcliffe, marathon winner and record breaker, who crossed the line more than 24 hours earlier.

Organisers set up a ribbon for Clare to run through and, amid cheers and congratulations, she was presented with flowers and her medal by Hugh Jones, the 1982 London Marathon winner.

Clare said at the finish: "I'm a bit knackered now. It's the furthest I've ever walked in my life.

"The last two miles were the worst because my hip gave out and I was in agony.

"I stopped for a couple of hours to sleep and then got up at 3am to carry on.

"The beginning was great because everyone was cheering and calling my name and the atmosphere was amazing.

"Then, after an hour, everyone disappeared and it was just me on the road. They started taking up all the drinks stations and then they took away the toilets."

Clare said she was already thinking about her next run and has her sights set on the Nottingham half-marathon.

She said: "I can't believe I've done it. I've proved the doctors wrong, they said I might never walk again."

Clare had both her legs amputated below the knees when she contracted the potentially deadly brain disease meningitis.

She fell into a coma and did not wake up for six months. She also contracted the killer hospital bug MRSA and "died" twice on the way to a specialist hospital in London.

The disease caused her legs and hands to go black and, five months after she was struck down, doctors had to make the heartbreaking decision to amputate her legs.

They also warned her family that she could be severely brain-damaged due to a brain haemorrhage. At one stage they almost switched off her life support machine.

But a doctor found signs of brain activity as her left eye was dilated.

When she eventually woke up in September 2001 her mum Karen and stepdad Eiffie Verboort had to break the news to her about her legs.

Clare said: "I went to scratch my leg and it wasn't there. I thought I was hallucinating."

She was moved to Southlands Hospital in Shoreham for rehabilitation, where Heather Mills paid her a visit.

She gave Clare her phone number and e-mail address.

As Clare learned to cope with the loss of her legs, she also had to come to terms with the fact that the loss of her right index finger had put paid to her hairdressing career.

A scan also showed that the part of her brain that controls balance had been damaged so she must battle dizziness as well.

She received an Argus Child of Achievement Award in 2002 for her bravery in dealing with the after-effects of the disease that nearly claimed her life.

When she announced to her family that she wanted to do the London Marathon in aid of the Meningitis Trust they thought she had gone mad.

Clare decided to take part in the marathon after her picture was used for a Meningitis Trust poster encouraging people to join in the event.

Before the race she said: "It will be a huge challenge but once I have set my mind to something I will do it, no matter how long it takes."

Clare trained every day with her stepfather but before the marathon the furthest she had walked was 12km, about 7.5 miles.

She raised £5,000 for The Meningitis Trust.

Meningitis Trust chief executive Philip Kirby said: "Clare is an inspiration to others and we're proud of her achievement, as we are of all 130 of our runners.

"The achievement is particularly special for Clare though as less than five years ago, having contracted meningococcal septicaemia, it was uncertain whether she'd be able to walk again at all."

Other marathon runners from Sussex battled through to complete the gruelling run and raise thousands of pounds for charity.

Iain Millard, 46, of Bannings Vale, Saltdean, found the heat the hardest part as he struggled to beat his personal best of just under five hours.

The ex-RAF man, who is registered blind, ran with a guide and crossed the line in 5hrs 26min.

He said: "I had to drink so much water so as not to dehydrate. "It was an amazing atmosphere, with the crowd really cheering everyone on. I definitely want to do it again next year.

"I've done five now and it's a real bug.

"I feel a bit achey but nowhere near as bad as I have felt after doing them in the past."

John Habkirk, 46, of Blake Close, Crawley, suffers from multiple sclerosis and completed the race on crutches.

He crossed the line after 6hrs 32mins and raised thousands for MS charities.

Trudy Roberts, from Hove, said it was her first and last marathon.

She said: "Never again. I have never known pain like it. After 11 miles my knee gave out and then so did my other knee.

"I thought I wasn't going to make it but I did and now my knees look like elephant's knees and I can't walk."

Stephen and Sue Jenkins, from Billingshurst, ran the course together dressed as a giant star and a fairy.

They completed the race in 5hr 22min in memory of their son Morgan, who died of a brain tumour aged five.

They raised money for the Starlight Foundation that grants wishes to seriously ill children.