Physiotherapist smashes target and raises £2,290 for St Christopher’s Hospice by running virtual London Marathon

A physiotherapist raised more than twice her target to help raise money for the hospice where she works.

Lorna Malcolm, 62, on the staff at St Christopher’s Hospice in Sydenham, took matters into her own hands when this year’s London Marathon was cancelled.

Lorna ran a ‘virtual’ 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon on October 4 of 26.2 miles around the streets of London, to raise funds for the hospice’s care.

She has so far raised £2,290 – way over her £1,000 original target by her tour of the sights of South London with her four nephews.

She said: “Although I had been running throughout lockdown, the longest distance I ran was about 10k so it was a real challenge for me physically.

“I only decided to take part in this virtual marathon event three weeks before so I didn’t have much time to train.

“Being able to complete it in a 24-hour time frame definitely eases the pressure a little. Mentally it was weird doing this on my own, which is why I involved my friends and family.”

Lorna, from Beckenham, ran to Vauxhall and then took a tour around South London where the hospice operates, including through Anerley, Sydenham and Penge.

Lorna last ran a marathon in 2017, but was prepared to make such an awesome effort again because she sees every day how the hospice makes people’s lives better.

She added: “I’ve worked at St Christopher’s for more than 12 years, initially in the rehabilitation team and now as part of our community team, and I know how important the work we do is and how valuable it is to patients, their family, and friends.

“I also know that we have to raise more than £15 million every year, but that this year, thanks to Covid-19, we are hundreds of thousands of pounds below where we should be in our fundraising.  If you’d like to help us catch-up, please visit my JustGiving page.”

To support Lorna and your local hospice, click here.

Pictured top: Lorna Malcolm