A new father will run the London Marathon this month in memory of his cousin who took part in the same race a decade before him.

Will Thorp’s cousin Georgina was cared for at Cynthia Spencer Hospice in the final weeks of her life after a battle with bowel cancer.

Georgina, or George as she was affectionately known, was a keen runner and raced in the 2016 London Marathon. Will has been training hard, despite lack of sleep with a newborn, to now follow in her footsteps and raise much-needed charity cash for the hospice he says his family will forever be indebted to.

Will said: “We’re eternally grateful for the care that George received at Cynthia Spencer Hospice and the compassion that the whole family received at the time. They’re not just looking after one patient; they look after all the people around them too which is amazing.”

Training alongside becoming a dad again has been tricky, alongside the wintry weather, but Will is determined.

Will said: “George and I had a shared passion for running. We did a lot of running together and George absolutely loved Marathon Day even if she wasn’t running. We lived in London together for a while, so she’d always go down and watch as it was one of her favourite days of the year.

“George ran the London Marathon in 2016, 10 years before I’m going to run it, so it seemed like a fitting way to try and give something back. When I realised it was 10 years, I knew I had to do it.”

He added: “Before George ended up in the care of Cynthia Spencer Hospice, I didn’t know a lot about it. That has changed significantly since the end of last year. Cynthia Spencer Hospice will always hold a special place in our hearts. It was transformational for the last few weeks of George’s life and so I think we will have an attitude going forward of anything we can do to help, we will try and do it.”

Will is not the only participant fundraising for Cynthia Spencer Hospice Charity. Alongside him will be Ballot winners Steve Forbes, Rachel Cross, Sam Drage and Charlie Crabtree plus Golden Bond runners Kerri Ford, Nathan Buckley and Tracy Boatman.

Tracy was inspired to run for the charity after four of her friends were cared for at the hospice.

“They are just angels in there,” she said. “What they do for the patients is amazing, they go above and beyond. When I visited my friend, I was blown away by what they did for her, and for the people that come to visit as well. I knew I wanted to help and give back.”

Tracy has already overcome several injuries during her training but has already raised £5730 before even starting the race through hosting a coffee morning and quiz night.

She said: “Training is challenging because you’re training through the winter, battling the cold, the wind, the rain while trying to hit all your targets and it doesn’t always go to plan.

“I’ve had calf strains and a few issues with my knees, but what keeps you going is the memory of your friends and the reason why you’re doing it pushes you forward.”

Steve Forbes was pleasantly surprised when he was lucky enough to gain a ballot place for this year’s marathon.

Although Steve has never done any series running in his life, he wanted to help his extended family to raise money for the hospice after “the amazing care” they gave to their loved one.

Steve isn’t racing, simply taking part. He added: “I’m really looking forward to the marathon, but I’m not concerned about a finish time as I just want to complete it. I’m looking forward to seeing the crowds and my family cheering us on and encouraging us, as it will definitely be needed by me to complete such a distance.

“It will be great to hopefully meet up with the other Cynthia Spencer runners when we’ve completed it and to celebrate our achievement of completing the race and raising so much money for an incredible cause.”

The London Marathon takes place on Sunday 26^th April.

To help the runners with their fundraising, visit https://2026tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/cynthiaspencerhospice/profile

For more information about running the London Marathon for Cynthia Spencer Hospice visit https://cynthiaspencer.org.uk/london-marathon/