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In October I will be attempting to complete an IRONMAN. 

That’s 3.8km (2.4 mile) swim, 180km (112 mile) bike and a 42.2km (26.2 mile) run...! 

I am using this crazy event to raise money for Rape Crisis and awareness for women who experience sexual violence by men.

Why?

Let’s jump back to the first week of March 2021. 

• In the UK, the story of Sarah Everard being taken from Clapham Common and killed by a police officer touched us all. 
• The ONS released data that nearly 1/4 of women have experienced sexual assault or attempted sexual assault, fewer than 1/6 of victims choose to report and only 1/5 reported cases result in the perpetrator being charged.

The same week, it was International Women’s Day. For those who know me - I’m usually pretty upbeat and inspired by the feminist movement empowering women in the workplace. This particular week, I was struggling to see how we could ever achieve work place equality when sexual violence by men against women is still so prominent. 

The reality is this week in March was not much different to any week. Every week in the UK 2 women are killed by their current or former partner and 2800 women are victims of rape or attempted rape by men. From schools and universities to workplaces and homes - things need to change. This is my why.

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Rape Crisis is a feminist organisation that supports the work of Rape Crisis Centres across England and Wales. These services are vital to supporting survivors of sexual violence such as a helpline, counselling and therapy. They also raise awareness and understanding of sexual violence and abuse in all its forms to work toward systemic change, including producing reports and lobbying the government. The money raised will go towards helping the charity offer services supporting survivors of sexual assault and to challenge the system to end the violence. 

In 2018 I ran Paris Marathon for this incredible organisation and raised £2,635. As a survivor of rape myself, the donations and conversations that happened as a result of my previous campaign and since have meant so much to me, and gave me big hope for change. I’ve spoken with so many other survivors who we helped too, so if you supported last time - thank you! 

This year I will be aiming to beat 2018 (the marathon is only the final 1/3 of the event.. after all). I’ll be wearing my Rape Crisis t-shirt with pride over the coming months during training and campaigning for donations/awareness. My employer will match the first £1000 so every pound you donate will go twice as far. I appreciate any contribution you can make to help me to achieve this!

If you want to go further than donating today, here are some top tips from me!

• Educate yourself by reading their resources: https://rapecrisis.org.uk/get-informed/ and then start a conversation with your friends about sexual violence. 
• I recommend this 30 min podcast for any men who don’t know how to help the cause: https://www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2021/mar/24/men-what-can-you-do-to-help-fight-misogyny-podcast (or women looking for tips for man-friends!)
• If you are a survivor of rape or sexual violence yourself, I send you my love and you are not alone. Here are 2 helpful resources: https://rapecrisis.org.uk/get-help/not-sure-where-to-start/ https://www.sarsas.org.uk/self-help-guides/ 
  
• Or if you are a friend / colleague supporting a survivor: https://rapecrisis.org.uk/get-help/looking-for-information/supporting-a-survivor/ 
  
• Source of my stats: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/natureofsexualassaultbyrapeorpenetrationenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2020 

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