On 28th September, Anna and I took on the Loch Ness Marathon in support of Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY).

This was a cause that meant a great deal to me personally. I was good friends with Calum Mackintosh through Highland Rugby Club and in November 2023, Calum sadly passed away following a sudden cardiac arrest. Anna and I wanted to do something that could make a difference and raising money for CRY felt like a meaningful way to honour his memory while supporting the work they do. Their screening programme aims to reduce the frequency of young sudden cardiac death and it’s a cause we felt strongly about supporting.

The marathon itself was a fairly last-minute decision which made things more challenging. The Loch Ness Marathon is known for being a tough route and without a huge amount of preparation it was never going to be easy. There were points on the day where it really tested us both physically and mentally. That said we genuinely couldn’t have done it without each other!

In total we raised around £2,000 for CRY which we’re both proud of. It made all the effort worthwhile knowing we were able to support such an important cause and hopefully contribute in some way to preventing similar tragedies in the future.