Brixton resident Michael Odd was one of eight brave runners who took part in the annual Royal Parks Half Marathon in support of the National Deaf Children’s Society on Sunday 13 October.
Michael joined around 16,000 other runners and followed the 13.1-mile course along closed roads, taking in some of the capital’s world-famous landmarks and four of London’s eight Royal Parks – Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, Green Park and St James’s Park. The runners were spurred on by the crowds who had turned out in large numbers to support them.
Michael completed the run in a time of two hours and three minutes and is hopeful of reaching his fundraising target of £500 for the National Deaf Children’s Society, which supports the UK’s 50,000 deaf children.
Michael, 29, works at the RAF Museum in Hendon as an Access and Learning Officer and lives in Brixton. He was inspired to run for the National Deaf Children’s Society by Charlie, the young son of his cousin Tom, who was born deaf and has recently been fitted with cochlear implants. The family were supported by the charity.
Michael said:
“The money I raise will go to the National Deaf Children’s Society to help out children like Charlie and their families and enable the charity to continue with the valuable work it does.
“I had an incredible day and it was so inspiring to take part in such a large event with so many other runners raising money for a good cause. The National Deaf Children’s Society’s cheering team were great and really gave me the motivation to push on to the end. I will definitely be racing again.”
John Larkin, of the National Deaf Children’s Society’s fundraising team, said:
“I want to say a huge thank you to Michael and to all our wonderful runners in this event. We couldn’t be more grateful for their incredible support and the buckets of dedication, time, training and effort they have put in.
“It’s through selfless supporters like Michael that we are able to keep on doing what we do, supporting the 50,000 deaf children and their families across the UK, now and into the future.”
