Brave meningitis victim Clare Forbes is celebrating after she ran the New York Marathon in her personal best time.

The 21-year-old, from Broadfield, Crawley, completed the 26-mile challenge despite losing both her legs to the illness four years ago.

Clare, who has prosthetic legs, had to make frequent stops during the marathon and was in extreme pain throughout.

But she refused to give up and finished the course accompanied by her stepfather Eiffie Verboot in about 12 hours 30 minutes.

As she crossed the finishing line at New York's Central Park she said getting a medal was good but added: "I really need a seat."

Clare and her stepfather flew to the US on Wednesday for the marathon on Sunday. She beat her London Marathon time by more than six hours.

She hit the headlines during the London run in April when she finished in 19 hours and ten minutes.

Clare had both her legs amputated below the knee when she contracted meningitis in 2001, fell into a coma and did not wake up for six months.

She also contracted the hospital superbug MRSA and "died" twice on the way to a hospital in London.

She nearly missed the marathon after the Meningitis Trust withdrew her entry, saying it was worried about her health and safety.

Clare and her family were furious. They said the decision was hers and she was determined to go ahead.

Farnham-based company 2.09 Events, which co-ordinates entries to the marathon, stepped in to give Clare and Mr Verboot tickets to take part.

Mr Verboot said they were hoping to finish in about 15 hours and were thrilled Clare beat that.

She hopes her latest achievement will have raised thousands of pounds for the Douglas Bader Foundation.

The charity for amputees is in memory of Group Captain Sir Douglas Bader, who lost both his legs in an aeroplane accident in 1931 but became a hero pilot during the Second World War.

money raised will also go to the Achilles Road Runners, a running organisation for disabled people, and the appeal for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Clare's long-term aim is to raise £1 million for charity to say thank you to all those who helped save her life and have supported her over the years.

The ING New York City Marathon is one of the world's great road races and draws more than 85,000 applicants.

It attracts many world-class professional athletes, not only for the 500,000 dollar prize money but also for the chance to run before two million cheering spectators and 260 million worldwide television viewers.