Chris’ Great North Run and Virgin Money London Marathon challenge
Chris was diagnosed with Gastrointestinal stromal tumour (GIST), a rare type of tumour, in his small bowel in 2019. He went through surgery in early 2020 to remove the tumour, but subsequently found out the cancer had already spread to his liver, and is unfortunately incurable. This would be a blow for anyone, but Chris hasn’t let this news stop him.
In fact, he’s chosen to take on a running challenge – this autumn he will be taking on not just the Great North Run, but also the Virgin Money London Marathon. He says:
The Great North Run is my local event, I ran it a few times before I became ill and it’s an event that’s just so special. The atmosphere is like nothing else, so I jumped at the chance to do it again.
The London Marathon is another level! It’s a real bucket list event for me, I’ve often entered the ballot but never been successful. I don’t know how many “healthy” years I’ve got left, so I wanted to run this year while I’m still able to put in the time and effort.
