UPDATE:

Thank you so much donating to Anthony Nolan, my chosen charity. Also very much appreciated were your words of encouragement or – on occasion – bewilderment. I feel marginally guilty for having enjoyed myself so much in the process. Anyway, here some pictorial evidence of my struggles. Note the half-witted smile appearing on my face as the finish line approaches in my blurry field of vision… J

 

My stats, in the end, were as follows:

 

Bib No: 20579

SIGRID STANGL

Time; 00:56:30

Rank: 2432

 

…and I fully intend to shave quite a few minutes off that result next year. J

Thanks again (and do feel free to keep giving)!

Sigrid

 

Dear all,

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

      In a few hours I will be running the Asics London 10k (http://www.thebritish10klondon.co.uk/Frameset/Main.htm) in aid of the Anthony Nolan blood cancer charity and if you - I'd like you to sponsor me! Here’s why:

      You might have already been inundated with sponsorship requests this year - tis the season after all - but - this is actually my first time begging...

      The Anthony Nolan (www.anthonynolan.org) charity do great work, matching those who have been diagnosed with leukaemia and need lifesaving transplants with donors who are willing to donate their blood stem cells to. (More on the charity - and how you can help out beyond giving cash - below)...

      I've only ever run more than 10k once so far! In other words, you'll get your money's worth of pain on the day...

To keep things interesting I entered the 'London Great Swim' (http://greatswim.org/Events/British-Gas-Great-London-Swim/) last week,  which took place in the Royal Victoria Docks - post-swim pics come ABSOLUTELY FREE with your donation to the Anthony Nolan charity! Did I mention the wetsuit?

 There are other reasons  – before this year I couldn’t run the length of a street block without other pedestrians turning around in fear of the dying beast behind them – or asking me ‘are you ok?!’ Before this year I also didn’t know how much I could enjoy (nay – love!) running. So much so that I quit smoking the day after the London Marathon – also this year – in April. 

Enough about me - really I just want to say: please dig deep for a good cause and - in addition – think about joining the Anthony Nolan register. The money I’m raising goes to the testing of new additions to the register – in other words I’ve already COST them £100 or so by joining a few weeks ago. All it takes is a bit of your saliva in a test tube – sent to you through the mail. Please take note: “All new donors are welcome but young males and people from ethnic minority and mixed race backgrounds are underrepresented on the register.”

Cash and blood – please give it generously here...

 Photo updates of my sweaty huffing and puffing will be posted if and when available (and sufficiently humiliating).

 Many thanks to you all!

 Sigrid

 About Anthony Nolan

 Anthony Nolan is a pioneering charity that saves the lives of people with blood cancer. Every day,  we use our register to match remarkable donors willing to donate their blood stem cells, or bone marrow, to people they have never met who desperately need lifesaving transplants.

• We provide two potentially lifesaving transplants every day, but for every patient we can help, there is another who sadly we can’t because no match can be found.
• To join the register, you must be aged between 18 and 40, weigh more than 8 stone (51kg) and be in general good health. For more information on the donating process, or to apply to join the register, visit www.anthonynolan.org or call 0303 303 0303.
• On average, 65 people a day in the UK are diagnosed with a blood cancer – that’s one person every 23 minutes.
• There are nearly 1,600 people in the UK in need of a bone marrow transplant.  This is usually their last chance of survival.
• 70% of patients will not find a matching donor from within their families.
• 80% of donations take place via PBSC (peripheral blood stem cell collection).  This is an outpatient appointment and is similar to donating blood.
• Most donors talk about how wonderful it is to have saved someone’s life.
• All new donors are welcome but young males and people from ethnic minority and mixed race backgrounds are underrepresented on the register.

 

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.

So please dig deep and donate now.