This story was written with the help of Rob's guides Duncan and Stephanie. Rob dictated his story, and we've transcribed it here.

I started running about 8.5 years ago after losing my sight approximately 11 years ago. I went blind really quickly—pretty much overnight because of optic nerve damage because of a rare neurological condition called Behçet's syndrome. It's a rare condition. It's untreatable, but it can be controllable with medication. Not a lot of people know about it—it's damaged nerves in my central nervous system.

11 years ago, I had inflammation on my brain. I fell, and it severely damaged my optic nerves, so I was registered severely sight impaired. Six months after, I went blind in May 2014. About three and a half years ago, I just got inspired, and I wanted to start running. I never really did anything like that before because I had lost my independence, and I couldn't do other things I enjoyed doing like playing computer games. I couldn't do that anymore, and I decided that running was something that I could do. I used to get really frustrated and angry about things. I still do sometimes, but I've had a lot of therapy, but I've accepted a lot more things.

My hearing is a long-term issue. I started to lose my hearing when I was about 18, but that has been more of a gradual process. I'm profoundly deaf in the right ear, and I've got severe loss in the left ear where I do have hearing aids. It’s stabilised in the last seven or eight years.

I've done 225 Parkruns in 28 locations. I've done things like waterskiing, swimming, VI tennis, and VI cricket. Some things I really enjoy; other things I find a lot more difficult because of my hearing loss.

I’ve met some lovely people along the way. All the volunteers that helped me achieve things, I’m really truly grateful for what they've helped me achieve and help me get this far. I'm looking forward to this new journey with a new team. There have been ups and downs along the way, but it's about what I do now and what I can achieve.

It's a privilege to accept this challenge to run the London Marathon. I'm running for Deafblind UK because I have a dual sensory impairment and not a lot of people know how much of a struggle it can be to have two sensory impairments.