Runners to do 32 marathons in aid of Children's Cancer Unit Charity

A group of ambitious and determined runners will arrive in Derry tomorrow on the third day of their gruelling challenge in aid of The Children's Cancer Unit Charity.
CCU32 runners Noel McNally, Paul Tyrell and Niall Farquharson prepare for the start of their CCU32 Challenge, along with the help of little Erin and Zach who are both receiving treatment at the Unit.CCU32 runners Noel McNally, Paul Tyrell and Niall Farquharson prepare for the start of their CCU32 Challenge, along with the help of little Erin and Zach who are both receiving treatment at the Unit.
CCU32 runners Noel McNally, Paul Tyrell and Niall Farquharson prepare for the start of their CCU32 Challenge, along with the help of little Erin and Zach who are both receiving treatment at the Unit.

The runners will be joining this weekend’s Derry City Park Run as part of their 32-day challenge which sees them undertake 32 marathons in each of the 32 counties of Ireland.

While joining the crowds of regular ‘park runners’, Team CCU32 will be extending the usual 5k route to the full 26-miles marathon distance by repeating the course approximately 8.5 times until they reach the target.

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Paul Tyrell from the team explained the rationale for the challenge and encouraged others to join them where they could.

“It was my friend Noel McNally’s idea to undertake this challenge of 32 marathons in 32 days in 32 counties – he knew I was mad enough to get involved so it didn’t take me long to sign up.”

He said they would really love members of the public to come out and cheer them on or join in the run, even for a mile or two.

“The runners behind CCU32 all have healthy kids and we don’t take this for granted, so we wanted to give something back to families less fortunate than ourselves. I have been working at the Royal Victoria Hospital for 24 years, so we decided to raise money for their Children’s Cancer Unit.”

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The team is aiming to raise £100,000 in order to buy a vital new ultrasound scanner for the Children’s Cancer Unit at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children.

Jacqueline Wilkinson from the Children’s Cancer Unit Charity commented: “We are really excited and equally nervous about this colossal challenge that the CCU32 team have undertaken.

“Without their efforts and their support, we could not continue to assist the medical team and staff at the Children’s Cancer Unit or help to create a more welcoming and comfortable environment for their young patients and families.”

CCU32 will be participating in this weekend’s Derry City Parkrun at 9.30am beginning at the usual spot on Queen’s Quay.

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The CCU32 team have also appealedfor the public to help them raise their target of £100,000 by visiting their Just Giving page at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ccu32 or by simply texting ‘CCUC99 £2’ to 70070, to donate £2 to their cause.

For more information on the Children’s Cancer Unit Charity or to find out how you can support the work of the Unit visit www.childrenscancerunit.com

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