Chelmsford man to tackle first marathon at 50

A local Chelmsford resident is set to achieve a remarkable milestone by completing his first marathon at the age of 50 after overcoming illness.

David Wilkinson, who celebrated his 50th birthday in June, will be taking part in the Chelmsford Marathon, sponsored by Countryside and L&Q’s flagship development, Beaulieu, on Sunday 13th October to raise funds for local charity Havens Hospices, which is the beneficiary charity of the event.

David took up running to improve his fitness around 14 years ago when he met his wife Tara, a keen runner, and then started to enter half marathons across London and Essex. In 2015, David won a ballot place for the London Marathon but during his training in the lead-up to the event he became seriously unwell and was diagnosed with Post Viral Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

David said: “I was told by my consultant that I potentially might not be able to ever train or run again, I was devasted but had to focus on getting better which I knew could potentially take a very long time or not at all.”

He continued: “The severe fatigue lasted five years and as the pandemic hit, I began to find my energy levelling out and felt like I could start to lightly train again.

As his recovery improved and training progressed over the years, David ran a half marathon event in April this year at the South Woodham Salt Marsh Half Marathon, his first since his illness. He said: “It was so good to participate in a race again. The half marathon went as well as it could after training for a road race, and then the day before discovering it was, in fact, a cross-country half marathon with 40 mph winds and flooding towards the end of the course, but I loved every minute of it.”

What seemed like an impossible dream, David is looking ahead to the Chelmsford Marathon, his first marathon event.

The Chelmsford Marathon and Half Marathon, sponsored by Countryside and L&Q’s flagship development, Beaulieu, starts and finishes in the city’s Central Park and is a popular fixture in the Essex running calendar which sees over 1,000 runners each year take part.

The annual event raises vital funds for the Essex-based charity Havens Hospices, which provides specialist care for children and young people living with incurable conditions and supports their families.

David has chosen to collect sponsorship towards this cause for his first marathon with the hope he can make a difference to local families who need the care and support of the hospices which rely on donations to provide this free specialist care across the county.

When asked what he’s most looking forward to about the event, he said: “The finish line and the atmosphere on the start line, but I’m truly looking forward to completing my personal journey for a race I wanted to do nearly a decade ago.”Registration is still open for this year’s Chelmsford Marathon and Half, taking place on Sunday 13th October. Visit www.havenshospices.org.uk/chelmsfordmarathon to sign up.

To support David with a donation, visit his JustGiving page: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/First-Marathon-at-50

Published 24th July 2024 

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David training for Chelmsford Marathon