I am running the London Marathon 2023 in support of the Lily Foundation.  

This will be my first marathon.  My previous two attempts were thwarted by injury a few weeks before I was able to get to the start line.

My motivation and inspiration is Poppy Kitto, the 12 year old daughter of some great friends, Kat and James.  

Poppy suffers from mitochondrial disease having been diagnosed aged 2.  Poppy is severely physically impacted and is unable to talk, walk, eat or move independently.  These are all things that she was able to do at one point in her life but which have been taken away from her by this debilitating and progressive disease.

In it's simplest terms, having mitochondrial disease means that the batteries in Poppy's cells aren't powerful enough to enable her body to function as normal.  Tragically there is no treatment for this disease, and no cure.

The Lily Foundation is a small charity which works tirelessly to fund research into mitochondrial disease, drive awareness and support impacted families.  They rely on fundraising events like this to be able to operate, and as such I would be hugely grateful if you would consider sponsoring me to help support the amazing work that they do.

You can watch a short video of how young adults' lives are affected by mitochondrial disease here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZlX7gfyA8A 

Thank you!

Tom