SUNDAY 3rd October saw the long-awaited return of the London Marathon. 

A huge fundraiser for charities; generating in the region of 66 Million pounds each year so it came as a huge blow to the Charity Sector when mass participation events were cancelled throughout the pandemic.

2021 saw the return not only of the main race in London with approximately 40,000 runners taking to the streets (including our very own Head of Therapy, Becky who ran a simply incredible 3’13” race!) but also the first Virtual race for 40,000 runners who were free to pick their own route. Clear Sky was delighted to be awarded 3 places in the virtual event and recruited three determined local competitors through local fitness group ‘Raise The Bar’.

Our dedicated trio; Adam, Helen and Jo trained throughout the Spring and Summer months in the lead up to the big day; setting up a combined fundraising page for Clear Sky. 

On Sunday morning, sadly Helen found herself trapped by floodwater in her village and had to think fast to change her route! As planned however though, Adam and Jo set off from Hambledon Lock in Henley on the Thames to run the Thames path along to Pangbourne and back to the finish in Christchurch Meadows, Caversham.

It was incredible to welcome our runners in after 26.2 miles each of mixed terrain cross country. Without the support of hundreds of thousands of supporters lining their route and cheering them on, we give them huge credit for their determination and passion to get to the finish line.

At the finish line, we set up a welcome station complete with a gazebo, drinks and doughnuts where both Adam and Jo were presented with a small gift to soothe their aching muscles. Helen completed her 26.2 miles remotely and we were equally proud of the extra effort she put in to complete the planned course!

With very respectable finish times of 4’20”, 4’40”, and 4’43” we hope that our runners are extremely proud of themselves!

We’d like to thank all of the generous supporters who donated to Clear Sky for the marathon. At the time of writing, Adam, Jo and Helen have already raised a whopping £1940 to help us to support vulnerable children and their families.

And very special thanks go to Adam, Jo, Helen and to Becky and Kate of Raise The Bar for helping them with their training, and developing a marathon route for the day!