Two weeks ago, I found out that I would have the incredible opportunity to run this year's London Marathon on Sunday 2nd October, thanks to the wonderful @muslim.runners group. 

After receiving the news and going for a panic long run, it dawned on me that I only had 6 weeks to train - not ideal when your typical marathon training plan is at least 15 weeks long. But we move still, and so the last few weeks have involved upping my mileage whilst attempting to avoid injury...

With the recent news about the devastating floods in Pakistan, I thought it would be a good opportunity to double up my marathon attempt with some fundraising for those in need.

Catastrophic flooding across Pakistan has left one-third of the country underwater, in what the country's climate minister has described as a "climate-induced humanitarian disaster of epic proportions". Over 33 million people have been affected by the floods and more than 1,100 have died, including over 340 children. 

I last visited family in Pakistan in 2019, and seeing the images now of the devastation that the waters have caused is hard to comprehend, but the situation is likely to get worse in the coming weeks. More monsoon rains, more glacial outburst, and now dam bursts are set to arrive in the coming days, whilst Unicef has said more children are at risk of dying from disease because of the shortage of clean water. However, humanitarian aid can help ensure that residents can meet their basic needs for food and shelter and provide some level of protection against disease: