Published on 17 August 2021
A woman hopes to achieve her childhood dream of completing the London Marathon – despite setbacks including a major foot injury.
Laura Wilshaw, who works as a moving and handling trainer for East Kent Hospitals, will take on the 26.2-mile route in October to raise money for East Kent Hospitals Charity.
The 25 year old grew up watching the race on television and always dreamed of running down The Mall towards the finish line.
She said: “I have always wanted to do it, so I decided to apply. By the time I received the letter confirming my place I’d almost forgotten I’d done it, so it was a bit of a shock.
“Then it was postponed because of Covid so it feels like I’ve been preparing for a long time. To think it’s now just a few weeks away is quite daunting!”
Laura’s training suffered a setback when she injured her foot and, although it is now healed, injury issues persist.
She said: “I’ve had some problems with the foot which have made it a bit more difficult. But I’m keeping on with the training and I’m up to 11 miles now and slowly building up.
“My aim is really to finish the run, even if I have to crawl across the finish line, and if I can do it in under five hours that would be fantastic.”
She chose the charity as a way of giving back, after seeing the benefits for patients and staff from some of the projects it funded.
Laura, who lives in Dover, said: “East Kent Hospitals Charity has done a lot for us as a department, funding hoists and other equipment for the wards to make it safer for staff and patients.
“Raising money is a way of saying thank you and making sure they can help even more projects in future.”
The marathon takes place on 3 October. To add to Laura’s sponsorship, visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/laurawilshaw
