As a retired Paralympic Judo Player, running 26 miles is a long way from what I am comfortable doing! High intensity efforts lasting a maximum of 5 minutes is what I am used to rather than about 4 hours of aerobic running… but what comes with a big change is a big challenge, which is what interests me.

I first ran London marathon in 2014, a week after completing my very first marathon in my home town of Brighton, so was still recovering from that effort, which made it harder I think. However, the support and the atmosphere around the whole course was incredible. I remember it being a painful experience and I really had to dig deep and push myself, but the sense of achievement was amazing and worth the effort when I crossed the line.

This year I am running for Sightsavers as Challenge Ambassador, I am passionate to give back and support a good cause in any way that I can. I am very interested in the work being done across the world by Sightsavers and I’m excited to play whatever role I can to support the hard work being done by all staff and volunteers. Dealing with blindness even in a developed country can be tough, and having lived through this myself in relatively comfortable surroundings and having received fantastic support from similar local charities I was inspired by those who were dealing with this in less privileged situations and wanted to support in any way possible.