South Shields personal trainer taking on epic 84-mile run along Hadrian's Wall in memory of cousin who lost arm to cancer before dying from disease
A South Shields personal trainer is set to take on an epic 84-mile run in aid of two charities that have supported his family through the toughest of times.
Lee Nelson plans to run from Hadrian’s Wall in Carlisle to the Baltic on Newcastle’s Quayside, covering the 84 mile distance in just one day on Saturday, August 7.
The 30-year-old from Tyne Dock hopes to raise £1,000 from his effort, with funds to be split between the Teenage Cancer Trust and heart failure charity, Pumping Marvellous.
Lee chose the two charities after tragically losing his cousin, James Addyman, to cancer, while his partner’s sister, Sam Purcell, has a heart condition and had to have an ICD fitted after suffering a cardiac arrest.
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Lee, who runs business Raw Fitness North East, said: “My side of the family has a lot to do with the Teenage Cancer Trust, particularly my aunt and uncle, because my cousin lost his life to cancer.
“He developed a tumour in his shoulder and had to get his arm amputated.
“He got better but then [the cancer] came back in his 20s and he sadly passed away.
"Every year my family does something for the charity and I just felt like it was my turn to do something.”
Lee, who also works as a SEN care worker, continued: “Pumping Marvellous is a charity that helped my partner’s sister who has a heart condition and nearly lost her life after suffering a cardiac arrest a few years back.
"She was ressucuated and now has a defibrillator to control her heart rate.
"The charity was a massive help to her.”
Setting off at 3am on August 7, Lee hopes to finish the run at 9pm where he will be met by his family on Newcastle’s Quayside.
It will be Lee’s longest run yet, having run 26 miles in the past, but he hopes his friends will join him for some miles along the way.
Lee added: “I feel like it will be more of a mental challenge than a physical.
"With being a personal trainer I can train for long periods of time but when you are by yourself, especially those first few hours when it is going to be pitch black – it will be interesting.”
To donate visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lee-nelson8?utm_id=124 and https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lee-nelson7?utm_id=124
