A father from Liverpool has ran an incredible 7 marathons in 7 days, raising almost £30k for The University of Southampton’s paediatric albinism and blindness research.
Joe Marsden took on the gruelling running challenge due to his 1-year-old daughter Raya suffering from a rare genetic condition called albinism which can severely affect vision.
Raya was born in July 2023. To Joe and partner Sophie’s surprise, Raya was born with white hair, however they soon became concerned when they noticed Raya’s eyes moving differently to other children’s. The following month, Raya was diagnosed with a rare form of albinism that affects her sight and motor skills and means she can’t be exposed to sunlight.
1 in 17,000 people are born in the UK with albinism. Heartbreakingly, due to this, children with albinism are also diagnosed visually impaired. This results in lifelong moderate/severe visual impairments, for which there is currently no cure. Whilst researching, Joe and his partner came across Dr Helena Lee and her incredible work at the University of Southampton.
Her and her team of scientists, including ‘genius’ Dr. Jay Self, have been working hard to find a treatment for albinism, which would help save sight for thousands of children in the UK. She is excitingly close to finding a cure but needs more funding to complete her research. Through his 7 marathons running challenge, Joe has raised £28,000 for Gift Of Sight — the charity supporting the research at the university.
Joe said:- “I was so impressed with Helena and her determination to find a treatment, and so saddened by the thought of children like Raya having visual impairments, that I needed to do something to help. There are seven types of albinism, which got me thinking….what if I could run seven marathons in seven days across seven cities of the UK whilst raising awareness and funds for this vital research?”
On:- 1 September 2024, Joe ran 7 marathons in 7 days — starting in Southampton and completing them in London, Leicester, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester, before culminating in a final marathon in Liverpool. After training extremely hard for the gruelling challenge, coached by long distance runner Leon Bustin, triathlon coach Trevor Jones and physio Andy Ellis from AME Physio, he returned to Liverpool to a big welcome party.
The 41-year-old father of 4 said:- “My experience of doing 7 Marathons in 7 days was incredible — every day was different. Marathon 5, Leeds/Harrogate, was a grueller with 1900 ft of elevation so very tough on the legs. When I took my sock off I found all my skin on my right instep was ripped with a nasty open wound. Liverpool Day 7 when I woke up I couldn’t walk never mind run but I pushed on and finished.”
Joe has returned a hero after his huge achievement, raising almost £30,000 for the cause thanks to many kind donations and the following sponsors — The Fun Factor, Prime Contracts Ltd, ML
Associates, Brick By Brick Coaching, Win Win Water, AME Physio, GL Telecoms, Tram Productions and Albinism Fellowship.
Joe summarised:- “The feeling now I’ve done it is overwhelming — to think what we exactly achieved as a team. I feel it’s a massive achievement and now believe once you set your mind on a goal you can conquer anything. It was a great team effort and each person that ran with me or on bikes was a vital component to complete this mammoth challenge. We have raised £28k which is incredible and hopefully more donations to come. We are so grateful for everyone who has supported us.”
If you want to support Joe Marsden and donate to the cause, please click here.