Last week Wednesday I highlighted my friend Elizabeth from college and her Timberman Half Ironman triathlon for the Make-a-Wish foundation. I have known Elizabeth for a long time and was super excited to spotlight her efforts for charity.This week I am going to spotlight someone I only “know” from the Twitterverse. I “follow” Richard Jeggo on twitter (his name is @redraj) and I am not sure how I linked into him, but probably by searching “triathlon” and then finding out he was based in the UK.Richard is doing the Vitruvian middle distance (or half ironman) triathlon on Saturday the 5th of September. The Vit is one of *the* iconic triathlon races in the UK – I’ve heard about it ever since I dipped my toes into the open waters of triathlon in 2007. It is known for a great swim, rolling hills, and everyone says it is the best of the UK events. It always oversubscribes so I am sure it must be!Richard is doing the Vitruvian for the Leukaemia Society. The race consists of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and 13.1 mile run.You may remember that I did the London Bike-a-thon in July for Leukaemia Research – in memory of my neighbour and also my grandfather, who both died from blood related cancers.Richard’s story stuck with me as it is another personal journey which goes to the heart of using sport to fundraise for charity – so I am spotlighting him today and hoping that you join me in supporting his efforts:As some of you know my younger brother Jamie who was 17 in February was diagnosed with Acute Myloid Leukaemia in November of 2008. Jamie is an extremely talented footballer who has represented Australia at under 18 level and was poised to go off to the U18 world cup in December 08. He is currently undergoing chemotherapy and the good news is that he has responded tremendously to the treatment and the outlook is very positive. I remain humbled by his continuing positive outlook and wanted to put something back… to my mind if Jimmy can deal with 6 months of chemo, 4.5 to 5 hours of pain should be a doddle!!In no small part the success of Jamie’s treatment is as a result of the organisations that fund the research into the disease and I hope that by selecting The Leukaemia Society I can give a little back, as well as motivating myself through the next few months. You can donate to the Leukaemia Society via Justgiving at www.justgiving.com/richardjeggo – your donation goes to support vital research, and will also motivate Richard at those vital tough moments while he goes for it on the 5th!
