An inspiration

My friend Kelly completed the London Marathon today, on her 40th birthday. She has been training for months with an incredible dedication - more so because she was not a runner before she signed up. Kelly's inspiration is best said in her own words, so I have taken the following off her sponsorship page:

'Losing my Dad started before his death in March 2013. Alzheimer's Disease stole him from me bit by bit after the initial diagnosis 7 years ago. It is heartbreaking watching someone you love suffering confusion, torment and memory loss and devastating the day I realised that he didn't know who I was.

The day of the marathon, April 13th 2014, is my 40th birthday so makes it an even more poignant day. It has been a lifelong ambition of mine, and being able to raise money for such a worthwhile cause makes it worth the effort.'

A link to her sponsor page is here.

I first saw Kelly at around 6 and a quarter miles. She told us that her calf was in pain - and had been in considerable pain from 2 and a half miles in. She could jog a little but would have to walk the majority of the course. For some people, a set back so early into a race of such physical and mental demand would put them on the first tube out of there. Not Kelly. She gritted her teeth, remembered why she was doing it and kept moving. Anyone who knows Kelly would know that she would not give up.

I saw Kelly next at 11 and a half miles. She was walking but able to make jokes and you could see the determination in her eyes. She would beat this sodding marathon if she had to crawl it.

Kelly finished in 7 hours 15 minutes. Think about that length of time. Think about training for 6 months for all of your training to be blown out the window inside the first act of the race. Think about what it would take for you to keep going.

Marathon day means so much to so many different people. I took photos of Haile Gebrselassie as pace maker for the elites. I took photos of Mo Farah's first marathon. I took photos of the crowds. I took photos of the rest of the 'fun runners' - going for PB's, running for charity, running for pride. There was only ever only to be one blip for today, because she deserves so much more than a photo and a write up on my blipfoto but BBC never seem to pick out those who struggle with every step and then achieve one of the most incredible feats of their (or most people's) lives.

So here's to Kelly. Happy Birthday, you are my inspiration today.