Virtual London Marathon - Nicola's Story

Last year we were lucky enough to have Nicola run for us. Not only did she run the marathon in a time of 4hours and 17 minutes, but she also raised ChemoHero a staggering £2012.

For those who are interested in running the virtual marathon, here is what Nicola thought of the process.

I would highly recommend running a virtual marathon! It's easy to lose your running mojo when you see race after race getting cancelled, so training for the marathon allowed me to maintain my fitness and gave me a clear goal to work towards. As soon as I applied for my virtual marathon place, I immediately knew which charity I wanted to fundraise for. I've known Lisa of ChemoHero for a few years, so the second I messaged her announcing that I wanted to fundraise for her charity, she was - as always - appreciative, excited and super keen to help. She provided me with a ChemoHero running vest and gave me some fantastic prizes for my fundraising.

The ChemoHero Facebook page was a constant support, sharing my raffle posts and updating their followers with my running route and tracking my marathon day progress. The virtual marathon allowed me to run my own race at my own pace, pick my own route (although Storm Alex forced me to change my route at the last minute!), and the best part was the amazing support from friends and family. I had running friends join me for my first 8 miles and my best friend cycling alongside me for the remainder, keeping me sane through those wet and windy 26.2 miles! It was truly uplifting to see friends and family dotted along the route, braving the stormy weather with their homemade banners and cheering me on my way. As I approached the finish, I was surprised by the loud and familiar jingle of the Hockings ice cream van which had been organised by my sister in law!