Oundle's Marathon runners

Published on isbi School News dated Wednesday 29th of January 2014

On 13 April 2014, along with thousands of other participants, two Oundle pupils will be running the Virgin Money London Marathon.

The Virgin London Marathon is one of the great British sporting events, combining elite athletes, mass participation and record-breaking fundraising in one race. The course is a gruelling 26 miles 385 yards long, passing through the streets of London from Blackheath to the famous finish line at The Mall.

Angus Dowie (currently 17, but who turns 18 just a month before the event) will be running the Marathon to raise money for MS-UK.

Angus commented, 'Multiple Sclerosis affects around 100,000 people in the UK and this hugely worthwhile charity helps to provide services such as counseling, benefit advisors and medical advice to those affected. In the UK, 57 people will be diagnosed with this disease this very week.

I have personal connections within my family on my father's side and it is for this reason that I have chosen to run and raise money for this very worthwhile charity.

I am currently trying to run for about an hour every week day with Mondays as my rest days and Saturdays reserved for matches. I am then running longer distances on Sundays. I am planning a 3hrs:30minutes run on a Sunday in a few weeks time so that I know that I can be on my feet for this amount of time whilst running, though not at my maximum pace. I am hoping to beat my older brother's time of 3:34.'

Angus (who is hoping to raise over £2000 for MS-UK) can be sponsored at: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AngusDowie

Alexander Johnsen (18) will be running the Marathon to raise money for The Migraine Trust, whose aims are to examine the biology of the condition, analyse how changes in the brain actually cause migraines and improve the management and treatment of migraines.

A-J commented, 'Migraine is a complex condition with a wide variety of symptoms. For many people the main feature is a painful headache. Other symptoms include disturbed vision, sensitivity to light, sound and smells, feeling sick and vomiting. Migraines usually last from 4 to 72 hours and can have an enormous impact on your work, family and social lives. I have some relatives who suffer from this condition and can see first-hand how a Migraine can strike and the effect it has on someone's life.'

A-J, who is training 6 days a week on a 24 week plan which builds up distance and time is hoping to raise at least £1500 for The Migraine Trust and can be sponsored at
http://www.justgiving.com/aj-johnsen

Not to be left out, Oundle School History teacher, Alex Brighton, is also running the London Marathon and hoping to beat his 3hour record from Seville while outgoing Secretary of the Old Oundelian Club and previous Marathon runner, Chris Piper will be marshalling at the 5.25 mile mark.

Sports Fellow, Polly Murdock will be running the Brighton Marathon on 6 April her first marathon, while Oundle Society Development Director, Matthew Dear, will be running the Hackney half marathon on 22 June to raise money for Hackney Quest, of which he is a Trustee.

Polly commented, 'I enjoy running and felt I wanted a challenge to stretch my training. I'm running 3x a week plus circuits, strength training and yoga based exercises! I have just done 13miles in training and hoping for my longest training run to be about 20/22miles before I start to taper about 3weeks before the event.'

She has chosen to support the Alzheimer's Society as her grandmother has been diagnosed with Alzheimers.

Polly added, 'Luckily she lives close by and we can provide the help and support for her but many people don't or can't get that. Raising money for the charity will hopefully provide care for those who need it and help for the carers themselves as well as money towards research. This is my first big event that I have done to raise money for charity and I am hoping to continue... A road bike challenge could be on the cards!'

To sponsor Polly, please visit: www.justgiving.com/runningtoremember and to sponsor Matthew, please visit: http://www.justgiving.com/Matthew-Dear1

Organising and supporting charity initiatives is something close to Oundle's heart; since September the community has already raised over £28, 000 for various charities. The School hopes that this figure will rise significantly over the year, with pupils such as Angus and Alexander leading the way.