ONCE again, on an unspectacular grey morning, Provide got to work down at Canary Wharf on Sunday, 25th April. Yet unlike many of the Community Action Days (CADs) it runs, QMSU’s volunteering branch joined up with hundreds of other organisations and thousands of other people to ensure that the 2010 Virgin London Marathon was a success.
No virgins of the marathon themselves, having marshalled and stewarded mile 19 in the Docklands previously, over 60 committed students and staff turned out to ensure spectators remained civil and runners remained on task. With the elite athletes whizzing by at a rate of knots, some claiming they would be unable to keep pace with them for a hundred metres, let alone the 26.2 miles through London, on came the celebrities and countless fun-runners, as well as the charitable souls who put themselves through agony and anguish to raise money for causes greater than their own.
Included amongst the number were four runners from here at QMUL, donning the READ Book Project vests and racing through the capital for the benefit of the hundreds and thousands of schoolchildren out in Tanzania that the organisation aims to help.
Ollie Honeybun-Arnold, a history/politics second year, completed the epic adventure in 3 hours and 58 minutes, sprinting the last two kilometres in 8 minutes to beat the four-hour barrier. “Crossing the finish meant success!” he said, “to raise money also for such a great cause that a number of you a Queen Mary are so dedicated to made it even more so rewarding to know that I crossed that line and didn’t let anyone down.
“The Marathon is not just about physical strength but mental toughness as well and the rush of emotion, sense of relief and pride when you run through the finish line on the Mall is unbelievable.”
Charlotte Kendrick, manager of Qmotion, finished in 5 hours and an agonising 17 seconds, Khaled Abid completed the run in 4 hours and 53 minutes and Ailisa Wheeler kept pace and finished just 30 seconds after Khaled in 4 hours and 54 minutes.
In her blog, Ailisa claimed, “the first 16 miles were really fun!”, and despite trapping a nerve and having to Superman the last 7 or so miles to avoid the pain of her left arm, pulled through to the end. “Seeing my parents and flatmates at miles 22 and 23 really did help though. Massive thank you to them for coming to support me!” Not to be finished with the ecstasy of the event, her emotional outburst at the completion was accompanied by a moment of celebrity: “A man standing nearby came over and asked if I was OK - further embarrassment when I realised this man was Richard Branson!”
When the final runners passed mile 19, the Provide team started packing away and, after pulling an extraordinary 12-hour shift in some cases the day was over...for this year, at least.
To get involved with other CADs that Provide are offering over the summer, log on to the website at:
www.providevolunteering.org and search out the various events-opportunities coming up as great practise for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.