A Chalfont St Peter man who broke his back two years ago in a skiing accident is preparing to run the London Marathon.
Roy Burridge, who is an operations trainer at Heathrow Airport and a civil celebrant in Buckinghamshire, is gearing himself up to run the 26.2-mile race this spring in aid of Brain Tumour Research.
This comes after his youngest son, Daniel, was diagnosed with a low-grade pituitary adenoma – a slow-growing tumour on his pituitary gland – in 2017 at the age of 17.
Daniel, now aged 25, was the youngest person to complete the London Classics when he took part in the London Marathon, The RideLondon 100-mile cycling sportive and the Swim Serpentine two-mile swim in aid of the charity Brain Tumour Research when he was just 18.
Roy said: “Daniel got a lot of information and support from Brain Tumour Research following his diagnosis, advice that helped us too and went on to raise about £8,500 for it.
“That period was a very frightening time for us, so the charity is close to all our hearts.
“For Daniel to be the youngest person at the time to complete the London Classics was a fantastic achievement, but he’s just one of those people who is focused and gets things done.
“His tumour is non-cancerous so has been left in place whilst he carries on with his life.
“He did have to take growth hormones for a while but he still runs and, luckily, now he’s a healthy young man who works hard and plays hard.”
Roy only started to run again in September last year, but was forced to stop for roughly six weeks after having surgery on this shoulder.
He has since regained training and is now able to run a full 10 miles.
He added: “Running the marathon is something I’ve always wanted to do before turning 60.
“Every year I enter into the ballot and every year I get an email telling me I’ve been unsuccessful.
“This year I got in through a charity at work and, when I got my place, I contacted Brain Tumour Research and asked if I could still raise money for it by splitting my sponsorship between the two.”
“Daniel keeps telling me to ‘get on and do it’.
"It’s going to be a challenge but I’ve got the Richmond Half Marathon planned for 18 February and will be up to 15 miles by the end of February, so I think I’m on track.
“I’m looking forward to the whole experience, but mostly the atmosphere and the achievement of crossing that finish line, which I think will be very emotional.”
To support Roy’s fundraising, visit https://2024tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/roy-burridge or scan the QR code below.
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