From 23rd August 2025 to 29th August 2025, I am taking on my biggest challenge to date –running 7 marathons in 7 days across Europe.

In doing so, I hope to inspire and give hope to the kids out there struggling with bullying and their mental health, and the adults, who are left with the scars from their childhood, now battling mental health issues.

Running has saved my life, and I want to use this challenge to help others like me. To help make that happen I am raising money for Bright Young Dreams, the children’s mental health campaign launched by my childhood hero, Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill.

My running journey has been inspired by my own experiences of bullying as a child.

Whilst I suffered bullying of physical nature and cyber bullying, it was the verbal taunts and jabs for how I ran, that had the most profound effect on me.

I could escape the physical bullying when I was in lessons or there was a teacher nearby. The verbal bullying, there was no escape from. Verbal taunts and imitations could simply be mistaken for kids just messing around, but whilst I pleaded with the people mocking me to stop, my calls were ignored.

Unfortunately, as with most things in childhood and in a school environment, mocking me became a trend or a game, and more and more people latched on to it.

I tried to find friends and somewhere to feel safe but every time I thought I had, someone would come up to me, flailing their arms like the goose I apparently looked like while I ran. They would make goose noises at me and this spread until eventually everyone knew me as 'goose.' Inside of school, outside of school, on the bus to school, bus home from school, everyone knew me as 'goose.' I only ever wanted to be Ben.

I felt like I lost myself in that time, I never felt safe, and now when I reflect on it I realise I was struggling with my mental health.

But even then, I knew I wanted more for myself. I made a promise to myself that I would run a marathon one day.

I realised that I wanted to achieve something for me, for all the years I’d struggled. I wanted to prove to other people that however I run, however they saw me, they could only hurt me temporarily and the permanence of it would be the strength it gave me.

I ran my first marathon in 2018.

Now, anytime I find myself struggling, I stick on the running shoes that saved me and identity myself as Ben 'The Runner' as I continue on the path to find out just how good I can be.

That leads me to my next challenge of running 7 marathons in 7 days.

It’s going to be really tough, but I will be taking on the challenge for a cause I feel deeply connected to, Bright Young Dreams.

Bright Young Dreams raises funds in aid of Sheffield Children's Hospital Charity, which supports Sheffield Children's Hospital to provide life-changing mental health care, pioneering treatments, and essential support services for children and young people across the UK.

With children's mental health at the forefront of their campaign, they are helping to fund new and actionable research, clinical development, training of clinicians, and a new and updated global leading facility at Sheffield Children’s.

My running journey began after watching Dame Jess and Mo Farah at the London 2012 Olympics, and I’m hoping I can be the inspiration for someone else that Jess has been for me. It means so much to support something she’s created to help kids struggling like I was. Bright Young Dreams is about showing young people they aren’t alone - and that’s what my challenge is all about.

"May you find a way to come through all life throws at you and may we find a way to protect and support you." 🙏