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I did it!

I completed the London Marathon in 4 Hours 39 Minutes. Although this was over my expected finishing time, I think I considerably underestimated the last 6 miles.

I arrived at Greenwich early and the enormity of the London Marathon really began to hit me, not only by the amount of people but the reason why each and every person is running the marathon.

09:45 came around surprisingly quickly and we were off. It was great to see Lucy, Olivia and the rest of the support crew (Bex, Pete, Chris, Matt, Chrissie & Adrian) on Tower Bridge at mile 12.

I had to start digging in at around mile 17 and by mile 19 I had hit the wall which was unfortunate. I knew from this point that my 4 hour finishing time was slipping away and my run had now turned into a shuffle! J

I was given a much needed boost when I saw the support crew again at mile 25. And this got me through to the finish.

I crossed the line at the mall and was pleased it was all over, I vowed never to do this again. J

Thanks so much to everyone for sponsoring and supporting me. I could not have done this without you as all the kind donations have kept me motivated.

Thanks again - Michael xxxxxx

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Thanks for taking the time to visit my Just Giving page.

On Sunday 22 April 2012 I will be running the Virgin London Marathon in aid of NDCS (National Deaf Children’s Society).

The NDCS have provided fantastic support to my wife Lucy and I since we had the heartbreaking news that our first daughter, Olivia, was born profoundly deaf.

Olivia is now almost 11 months old and has been approved for bi-lateral Cochlear Implants. The operation is planned for summer 2012 and if all goes well then Olivia will be "switched on” a month later.

The NDCS helped us secure funding from the government to allow Olivia to have this operation and I am running the marathon to raise money for the charity so that they can continue to help families dealing with similar challenges.

I am aiming to raise £8,000 for the NDCS and would be grateful for any donations to help reach this target.

My 33 week training plan starts on Monday 5th September 2011 and I'm aiming to complete the run in 4 hours.

I have attached some pictures of me competing in some training races, of which I always wear my "4 Olivia" shirt.

Please dig deep and donate now, love Michael, Lucy & Olivia xxx

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

Michael's run for Olivia's cause

Michael's run for Olivia's cause

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