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I made a number of personal commitments last year and by participating in this triathlon I get to tick off two of them. During pre-training discussions, with my colleague Karolina we agreed to use this as an opportunity to raise money for charity. For that I thank Karolina greatly as she allowed me to nominate a charity close to my heart, the Transverse Myleitis Society. You ask why?

A number of years ago my Aunt was diagnosed with this very little known condition which paralysed her from the waist down. Her journey since then has been an incredible one. The trials she has overcome could fill a bestseller (especially they way she tells it ;-) and she has not finished yet. She has made incredible steps which include driving her car (on good days) and being able to drop the odd Salsa step. You would be marvelled if you knew how far she has progressed. 

My Aunt is a rock! You can't knock her down. But without the support of organisations like the Transverse Myelitis Society and the numerous health professionals her story would be very different. 

Karolina, a far superior athlete to me, will be competing in the Virgin Active London Triathlon on Sunday 3 August and will be taking on the challenge of completing at the Olympic distance. This means a 1.5km swim, 40km bike ride & 10k run. Well done Karolina!!!

I, being a non-swimming newbie, will be completing in the Bedford Classic Triathlon on Saturday 26 July and will be taking on the Mini distance. This means a 200m swim, 12km bike ride & 3.3km run. 

Raise money to support the awareness of this little known condition which strikes around 300 people 'globally' a year. Raise money to ease the journeys of these people whose lives are turned inside out by a condition which can take only a few hours to develop. 

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.