After four years' worth of failed entries into the London Marathon, I was expecting this year to be no different. I dutifully filled out the application form in April and patiently waited until mid-October for the big reveal. (For those of you who don't know, you find out whether or not your application has been successful by post. A magazine, to be precise). On this fateful day in October, I arrived home and bent down to retrieve the post. It was then I spotted it. This was it. The magazine from the London Marathon was faced down on the floor. I picked it up, whipped it over, and alas, it read, "Sorry! You can still be a HERO". The rejection magazine. My dreams were once again shattered. "Oh well," I shrugged, "I probably wouldn't be able to do it anyway". I collected the rest of the post, and grumpily tore open a shiny red plastic packet. "You're In!" it said in big white letters. It was the acceptance mag!! Suddenly the realisation hit me. Ben and I had both entered the ballot this year! Whose magazine was whose?! Whose was whose?! I snatched the red shiny packet off the floor and saw my name printed on the front... I was in.

It's not very often you get the chance to run in the London Marathon, unless you're either very, very lucky, or a speed-meister who can get guaranteed entry for being 'good-for-age'. So, although I don't need to raise a minimum amount, I have decided to run for a charity close to my heart, Alzheimer's Society, who are dedicated to defeating dementia.

Every penny counts, so please dig deep and sponsor me to run in what will definitely be the most fun, painful, exhilarating, and seemingly never-ending experience of my life!

Thank you,

Ali x

P.S. If anyone wants to come down to London on the 26th April to cheer me on, please do so! I need as much support as I can get! This is going to be tough.

You can follow my progress on Twitter: www.twitter.com/alicharles_run or on Instagram: @ali_charles

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

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