A DETERMINED county man who took on a marathon challenge in memory of his girlfriend has raised more than £4,000 for St Richard’s Hospice.
Adrian Norsworthy, from Worcester, set out last December to run 13 marathons in a year in a bid to raise as much money as possible in memory of his girlfriend Sarah Veall, who was cared for by the hospice before her death in 2014.
The 41-year-old has run a marathon each month starting the Isle of Anglesey Marathon in January and including the New Forest, Liverpool and Snowdonia.
In April he completed two marathons just a week apart, the Worcester Marathon and the Great Welsh Marathon in Llanelli.
Unable to find a suitable marathon to complete his challenge in December Adrian decided to work out his own route, with St Richard’s as his finishing line.
Adding up the miles he has run over the last year, both training and competing in marathons, Adrian had run the equivalent of Worcester to John O’Groats and back.
Adrian said: “Sarah had cancer as a teenager and it came back. She was in a wheelchair before I met her, but she was always so positive about it, she didn’t let it hold her back.
“I decided that in Sarah’s memory I wanted to raise some money for the hospice to thank them for the support and care they offered Sarah, myself and her family and also that they offer to many others struggling with illness and coming to terms with the loss of a loved one.”
He added: “When I set out to complete a marathon a month I knew what I had let myself in for as I had run a marathon a few years ago. Even so, the first run on Anglesey was very tough, knowing that my journey had only just started. The highlight of the year was the Telford marathon, which is longer at 28.2 miles, I was delighted to finish first with a time of 3hours 57 minutes.”
Adrian intends to continue competing in long distance races, and has signed up for the Worcester Half Marathon in April.
Anyone who would like to run the Worcester Half or Full Marathon for St Richard’s can contact the fund-raising team on 01905 763963 or visit www.strichards.org.uk
Log on to www.justgiving.com/Sarah-Veall-Forget-Me-Not-Fund for more information on the appeal.
