AN Aberystwyth woman is planning to run the London Marathon to raise money for Cure Parkinsons.

Emma Butler from Aberystwyth will be taking part in the London Marathon on Sunday 23 April.

Although Emma has taken part in the Marathon twice before she hasn’t embarked on such a lengthy running challenge in a number of years, so to keep herself motivated she has decided to raise vital funds for Cure Parkinson’s.

The charity is one close to Emma’s heart as her late grandfather lived with the condition: “I was nine years old when my grandfather died, following a 20 year battle with Parkinson’s. He was diagnosed at the age of 50 and the very clear memories we have of him as grandchildren are of a man who was fully dependant on his wife, our nan. He always had a smile for his grandchildren though, no matter what!”

Emma Butler
This will be Emma's third London Marathon (Cure Parkinsons)

Emma has been training since late last year, but began following a training plan in January which involves four runs per week and lots of stretching in between.

Because Emma is no stranger to marathon running she knows how to successfully train for a marathon, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t nervous about the epic 26.2 mile race.

She added: “I am six years older than the last time I ran a marathon so I'm a little apprehensive, but trusting the process.”

Excited to be taking part in the iconic London Marathon for a third time, Emma has fond memories of previous races and is looking forward to experiencing the sense of comradery when running alongside thousands of other people once again.

She said: “It's definitely a favourite race of mine due to its incredible organisation, overwhelming support from spectators and finding out the stories behind so many of the runners. There are some incredibly inspiring people that you stumble across on the day and their stories often stay with you. It can be very humbling.”

Cure Parkinson’s is hugely grateful to Emma for running the London Marathon to raise funds and awareness for Parkinson’s research. Helen Matthews, Deputy CEO, said: “Fundraising support is absolutely critical for the charity to enable us to achieve our goal. We aim to cure Parkinson’s and the only way we will do this is through the help of all our incredible supporters - it’s as simple as that!”

If you would like to donate to Emma’s London Marathon challenge please head to: https://2023tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/emma-butler-4547c