Imagine the world around you in darkness. For millions of people, this darkness is a reality. Blindness takes away so much more than vision. It can impede your ability to get an education. It can prevent you from finding employment. It can lead you and your family into a life of poverty. 

For many people in the developing world, this is their reality; up to half of all children in developing countries who become blind will die within two years, yet 80% of visual impairment can be prevented or cured. Orbis Ireland work to eliminate trachoma in a region of two million people in southern Ethiopia, which is among the country’s poorest and worst affected by avoidable blindness. Through conducting surgeries, improving water supplies and teaching communities about the importance of facial cleanliness, these people's lives can be transformed.

Over the past nine years, Orbis Ireland have raised almost €750,000 through participating in The Great Ethiopian Run. 2017 marks Orbis Ireland's tenth year of participation, and I will be proudly joining them in support of their life changing work. 

The Great Ethiopian Run was established in 2001 by one of the world's greatest long-distance runners, Haile Gebrselassie. On Sunday 26 November 2017, I, along with over 40,000 other people will take to the streets of Addis Ababa to take part in Africa's BIGGEST road race, a challenging 10km run at 10,000ft above sea level. As a former Irish international sprinter, this distance is a new and big challenge for me! 

ALL COSTS associated with the trip have been generously sponsored by AWAS, Boeing and Ethiopian Airlines so every cent donated will go directly to funding ORBIS projects in Ethiopia to help end trachoma.

http://irl.orbis.org/pages/great-ethiopian-run-2017-sunday-26-november-ire