In 2019 I signed up for a medical trial. As part of the trial an MRI was done on my brain and a small, supposedly harmless, tumour was detected. A later scan showed it growing so, two weeks after my 31st birthday I was scheduled for brain surgery, during which I had to be awake and talking the entire time. A week later it was confirmed that I had Stage 3 brain cancer, which normally comes with a life expectancy of 5 years. Because I’m younger I might get longer than this but either way I have decided that I’m going to spend my last years dedicating myself to achieving something difficult and worthwhile.
The Goal
I primarily want to break a world record, as much for my ownsatisfaction as for the charity, I have to admit! That said, the world record for the most money raised for running a marathon felt like the right one for me to try and break. I wanted to do something physical to show other people with medical or mental issues that they need not be defined by their condition. Think about what Stephen Hawking was able to give to the world, without even the ability to move his mouth to speak. I knew having cancer could attact people to give to a cancer chairty, I myself have given to mental health charities after the loss of a friend to suicide. In an odd way I thought it was a moral duty to raise money for a charity that I knew I’d be uniquely good at given my new situation.
“What a man can be, he must be.”
Abraham Maslow
A top that I wanted a world record that my cancer would hinder, not help. So during that same Marathon, I’m going to dress as a video game character, and run the marathon under a blistering 2 hours 57 minutes. Thus winning 2 world records in one fell swoop. My main goal is to try and break the most money raised for charity for a marathon, at £ £2,320,601
What can you do to help?
Oddly enough, at this early stage, giving my social media a follow/subscription/like etc will likely lead to attracting others, starting a snowball affect. Also having a large social media presence makes getting sponsorship from well known brands such as Nike far more attractive. Or if you’ve got anything else that might help me achieve my goals, get in touch!
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Iain’s Website: Click Here
Interview Transcript: Click here