‘I’m feeling muscles I didn’t know I had’

FOLLOWING his first marathon attempt at the weekend, local man Daniel ‘Danje’ Casey says he’s feeling a bit sore but ‘not too bad’.

Danje took on the 26.2-mile challenge last week in memory of his late mother, Cicely, and also to raise vital funds for the Foyle Hospice.

Following the achievement, Danje told the Chronicle, “I’m feeling a wee bit sore. It was my first marathon after all, but I honestly think I could have been left feeling a lot worse!

“I managed to get through it in four hours and 20 minutes, and, to be honest, I thought it would have taken me a lot longer. Going through Strabane, Ballymagorry, Clady, Ballindrait and Lifford is no joke. There are muscles I’m feeling that I never knew existed!”

Danje christened the marathon ‘My Mother’s Run’, and was able to get through it with an avalanche of help from friends and family, supporting him by running alongside in parts, giving support in cars, or providing much-needed sustenance.

“I don’t think I could have gotten through it without all the help,” Danje continued. “There are so many people who ran alongside me giving support – Anne-Marie McGranaghan; Dolores McCay and Kay Doherty who ran along my mum for years; the crew from Melvin running club; and many more, including Barry Porter, who spent all the time on his bike beside me. He had snacks which kept me going! I have to give special mention to a young man called Gavin Molloy. Only a teenager, he ran with me for the bulk of the marathon and it was lovely to have his company.”

Undeterred by tiredness, Danje even did the ending twice.

“I actually crossed the finish line at Melvin twice for people who missed it. I had to do a bit of showboating for the crowd you know – a wee bit of Danje Bolt!” he jokes.

l Danje’s GoFundMe page currently stands at £680 with sponsor sheets still in circulation in McFadden’s, and Haughey’s shops if anyone wishes to donate.