Omagh boys ‘inspired’ to run 5K every day in October

BY JORDAN DOHERTY

A QUINTET of local young men who braved the blustery autumn winds and rain, were inspired to run 5K every day throughout October to help those diagnosed with cancer.

The group of friends – Alex Preston; Aidan Taggart; Jonny Millar; Gareth Ney; and Dylan Byrne – ran a grand total of 775k between them, finishing up on Halloween day with fitting running gear to fit the occasion! The escapades saw the runners raise more than £1,800 in total – and counting – for Marie Curie, a charity who provides care and support to people with terminal illnesses.

Alex , aged 22, from Clanabogan is a Masters student at Queen’s University Belfast. He says that the idea stemmed from a love of running, and a desire to channel the passion into something worthwhile.

“We initially started with, perhaps, a quite modest target of £500, which we achieved quite quickly,” he recalled. “The most difficult element arose when there was pain in our legs. This made it harder to motivate ourselves to continue, but we knew we had to keep pushing.

“However, there were many aspects of this task that were rewarding on a personal level, as well as for the charity itself,” he added. “We’ve all improved our fitness, but ultimately, I think we are quite proud that we have done something worthwhile that will help others.”

Aidan, aged 23, from Omagh, was inspired to run for two heartfelt reasons. Not only did his brother begin the charity, ‘Feeding Omagh’s Food Banks’, but his friend’s mum had recently been diagnosed with cancer, and he felt that he should be ‘raising money to help’.

“Balancing the runs around my working hours was tough,” he said. “I started a new job half way through, so I had to run some nights at 8 o’clock. Also – running in the rain wasn’t much fun either!

“But the online support really kept us going,” Aidan continued. “Finishing that final 5K was a great feeling, and we’re all looking forward to the next challenge we’re going to set ourselves.”