Firefighter smashes personal best in 10k run in honour of Chloe and Liam
The parents of South Tyneside sweethearts Chloe Rutherford and Liam Curry have praised a firefighter after he powered home to smash a personal best in a 10k run in their honour.
Aaron Parmar, from Manchester, was taking part in the third of 22 running events, in tribute to those who lost their lives in the terror attack in the city in May last year.
He aims to complete a run for each person killed at the Manchester Arena that night - with each medal he earns being presented to their families.
The 32-year-old has taken to the road in honour of Philip Tron and his step-daughter Courtney Boyle.
On Sunday, he completed the Williams BMW Rochdale 10k run in tribute to Chloe, 17 and Liam, 19, achieving a personal best.
He will run a second race in their honour at a later date.
Mr Parmar, a police officer on the night of the attack, took on the running challenge as a way to let relatives of those killed in the atrocity know, they were still in the hearts of the emergency services.
He said: “When I’m running, that time is to think of the person who I am running for. I’ve seen some photos of the couple and it’s heartbreaking.
“The adrenalin does keep you going, but, for me, the overwhelming part comes when you see on social media the messages of support - even more so hearing from the families.
“I’m getting a lot of support from the emergency services as I’m doing it on their behalf too.”
Praising Mr Parmar for his kind gesture, Chloe and Liam’s parents said: “We are so grateful for everything Aaron has done, right back from that awful night to now.
“His heartfelt gesture to run a race for each of the angels lost that night is amazing and we feel honoured that he is running Chloe and Liam’s races in the Trust vest so that they really are with him every step of the way.”
Mr Parmar will take part in his next run on Sunday for Olivia Campbell-Hardy, 15, from Bury.
To sponsor Aaron visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/AaronleeGMFRS