Katy Herrington and Lynne White

"We wanted to support Cancer Research UK as I lost my grandad and Lynne lost her mother to cancer. Not only that, I was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2007," Katy says.

"This was our first big race. Before I became ill, we ran the adidas Women’s Challenge in 2005 and 2006.  We trained and ran the races together. The year when I was ill and receiving treatment, Lynne stopped running as well, but we started again as soon as I was fit."

The two friends also came up with a very interesting fundraising idea.
 
"We wrote to celebrities and asked for just one pound in the hope it would and add a bit of kudos to our online fundraising page. Once we started getting replies, it inspired us to send more letters.

"The response that floored us the most was from Jo Brand, because of her overwhelming generosity – she donated £50. The nicest replies were from Michael Ball and Gordon Ramsey’s team. Gloria Hunniford and Una Stubbs sent handwritten personal replies, which was lovely," Katy says.

The pair hope to have raised £2,000 by the time their online fundraising page closes.

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