An Everton fitness coach who has completed an incredible 26 marathons in 26 weeks has doubled his original fundraising target half way through his challenge.
Jack Dowling set himself a tough target to raise money and awareness for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Jack, from Crosby, decided to take on the grueling challenge after his brother Tom was diagnosed with bowel cancer in June 2022.
Because he is blue and Tom is red, they chose to start their six-month campaign by running their first marathon in October last year, the day after the derby match.
Jack, 30, originally set his fundraising target at £5,000, but quickly increased it to £32,250, the amount it would take to fund a specialist nurse at Macmillan for 26 weeks.
But the response has since been so strong that he was able to increase the amount again to £62,500, so he now hopes his efforts will cover the costs of two nurses.
Since running the 46.2 mile route for the first time, Jack has received tremendous support from both clubs and the local community.
He says it was a big morale booster. Especially when he was able to celebrate reaching the halfway mark at his alma mater, Chesterfield High School.
“Obviously it’s been tough, but it’s been such an amazing experience and so many people have come out so to reach the halfway point was very overwhelming for me.
“We did it at my school. My old gym teacher is the principal now, so he ran all the way with us. Then about 150 people who were there People would applaud us, which was amazing.”
“Right now I’m trying to get into the second half, but I’ve been having a little bit of trouble with my knee the last few weeks, so I’m just trying to fight through that pain.”
Jack admits that if he was working with athletes who had suffered similar injuries, he would probably suggest rest, but given his busy schedule leading up to April’s London Marathon, that’s not an option. do not have.
“What I have is called ITB syndrome and I need to take a few weeks off to let the symptoms subside, but obviously I can’t do that so I have to deal with it every week in the best way I can. there is.”
The way Jack started his 26 Marathons in 26 Weeks challenge over the Derby weekend, he was actually able to set aside 27 Sundays for the London Marathon, meaning he would have plenty of time off in the new year. I meant it.
He admits it’s probably not the best training for such a big race, but he’s not putting any pressure on himself when it comes to his time heading into London on April 21st.
“If you’re aiming for a peak marathon, you’re building up over 12 to 14 weeks, and that’s what I’ve been doing in the first few weeks, so I’m trying to peak or break my fastest time for London. Not really. I want to enjoy the experience and see what happens.
“I still want to push myself and I have a personal challenge to get everything under four hours and I’m doing that right now, so I’d like to at least achieve that and if I’m feeling good for the second half, I might just go ahead.” Good luck. “
Jack says the support from the local community really helped him while he hit the pavement.
“Every time I run, whether it’s a few miles, a half marathon, a full marathon, there’s more or less someone riding a bike or running next to me, and that keeps me going.
“Once you have a little chat and a few miles you go a little faster and the support has been great from the start.
“It’s difficult, but the idea is to just run longer distances on the weekends, and I don’t think it’s impossible. I just want to raise awareness, get people talking, get people to understand Macmillan, and maybe I just want people to test themselves, and my running is just a small part of that.”
Jack hopes Tom will be well enough to complete the London Marathon and is looking forward to crossing the final finish line.
“I keep imagining how I’ll feel when I cross the finish line. Then I’ll try to take a little break.”