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#JD20 Challenge: My First Marathon – Lisbon 2026
2026 marks 20 years of Design JD, and throughout the year I’ve been taking on a series of JD20 Challenges, pushing myself physically while raising money and awareness for charities that are doing incredible work in our communities.
The biggest challenge is still to come.
On10 October 2026, I’ll be taking on the Lisbon Marathon ... my first ever marathon.
That’s 26.2 miles / 42.2km, and after months of training, early mornings, long runs and plenty of miles in the legs, the aim is simple: get to that finish line!
The marathon feels like a fitting way to mark 20 years of Design JD. Running a business takes endurance, resilience and determination, keeping moving when things get difficult and taking things one step at a time. I suspect I’ll need plenty of all of those on marathon day.
For this final JD20 challenge, I’m raising money for three charities I’ve supported through the year:
Lives Not Knives – working to prevent youth violence and support young people through mentoring, education and opportunities.
Croydon Vision – supporting blind and visually impaired people to live independently, develop skills and be part of their community.
Chartwell Children’s Cancer Trust – supporting children and families affected by cancer and serious illness.
Each of these charities does hugely important work, and I’d love this marathon to help give something back to all three.
Whether you can donate £5, £10, £20 or more, every contribution will make a difference, and knowing people are behind me will definitely help when the miles start getting tough!
20 years of Design JD.
26.2 miles.
3 brilliant charities.
One very big first.
Thank you for supporting the JD20 journey and my first-ever marathon.
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