My Story

About my chosen charity

Like many of us, I have looked on at the events of the past year (and long before) with a mixture of heartache and dismay. As a healthcare worker of the past 20 years, the targeted destruction of critical medical care facilities and the indiscriminate loss of life assocoated with this has been particularly soul destroying to observe. 

In addition, I am about as far from a "typical" runner as you could get. I was woeful at distance running at school (preferring the 100m as it was over quickly) and have delaminated discs in my spine from a car crash over 20 years ago. As a result, choosing to run the next London Marathon for Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) is not something that is an easy decision, but I would like to take some meaningful action in response to the images of suffering and devastation which have been coming out of Gaza.

MAP is a highly respected organisation which works for a future where every Palestinian has access to a comprehensive, effective and locally-led system of healthcare, and the full realisation of their rights to health and dignity. 

To achieve this, they work in collaboration with Palestinian communities and trusted local partners to answer a wide range of health and social needs, from providing vital medical aid in emergencies, to supporting the development of better health services for the long term. They also uplift the voices of Palestinians, and campaign for an end to the barriers to health and dignity that come from living through occupation, displacement, discrimination and conflict. 

I would be eternally grateful if you would consider donating whatever you are comfortable with, to further their work over the coming months and years. 

About the London Marathon 

The London Marathon has become an annual, inspiring and colourful fixture in the world’s sporting calendar since the inaugural race on 29 March 1981: a celebration of fun, fundraising and fancy dress.

Over the years more than a million people have completed the 26.2-mile course – which runs from Blackheath to The Mall, with a spectacular finish in front of Buckingham Palace, showcasing the very best that the capital city has to offer.

What’s more, these participants have raised over a billion pounds for charity and there have been countless amazing tales of human achievement throughout the event’s history – living up to its aim of helping participants ‘to have fun, and provide some happiness and sense of achievement in a troubled world’.