Rob Beazley, a paralegal in the personal injury team at Bath law firm Withy King, has pledged to raise money for charity by completing 19 races covering 333km after a close friend was diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Inspired by his friend’s illness, Rob, pictured, has already completed six races this year and is gearing up to run a further nine between now and the end of October. They are all half-marathons or 10k runs.
He plans to tackle the remaining four early next year, culminating in the London Marathon in April – all to raise money for Ca
ncer Research UK.
Rob said his friend’s attitude had inspired him. “She has shown the most incredible courage throughout her diagnosis and afterwards, turning up for work every day and continuing to be the lively person she is known to be,” he said.
“She has inspired me to raise money for Cancer Research UK and running most of the half-marathons in the West of England seemed like a good way to do it. I’ve never been much of a runner but I’m on a continuous training programme now, clocking up around 30 miles a week and so far, I’ve managed to finish each race in good time.
“The challenging part is fund-raising. I am paying for the races myself to maximise the amount for Cancer Research. Colleagues at Withy King have sponsored me and I have received great support from family and friends. If anyone else would like to recognise this initiative with a donation to Cancer Research via my just giving page, it would be very much appreciated.”
This month, Rob will be running the Chippenham 10k and the Chew Valley 10k. So far, he has raised almost £500 of his £2,000 target.
To find out more about Rob’s running challenge and to offer support, visit his Just Giving page at http://www.justgiving.com/Rob-Beazley2
