Claire Lomas is preparing for her toughest challenge yet as she takes on 10 miles in 24 hours at the Great South Run.
Claire, who was paralysed in a cross-country fall at Osberton in 2007, is aiming to walk the Portsmouth route in one go this weekend (21-22 October).
She will be wearing a robotic ReWalk suit and will be walking through the night to raise money for the Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation (NSIF).
The mother-of-two will start at 10am on Saturday and is hoping to complete at 10am on Sunday.
The longest distance Claire has previously walked in one day is six miles and she will also have to contend with strong winds and rain as Storm Brian is predicted to reach the south coast on Saturday.
With the bad forecast I thought I better have a practice in wind and rain ! #10in24 #greatsouthrun pic.twitter.com/YYfAYJbbsh
— Claire Lomas MBE (@claire80lomas) October 19, 2017
“The storm has taken my mind off walking,” laughed Claire.
“Ten miles is a big challenge for me, even without the wind and rain.”
The former event rider has been training hard for the event and went for a walk in last night’s (19 October) miserable weather to prepare herself.
She told H&H it “wasn’t easy” but she is up for the challenge and wants to give it her all.
“Training has been going better than for the Great North Run because I’m not pregnant this time, but there’s no way I can train over the distance [I will be attempting at the weekend].”
Claire is running a raffle on her JustGiving page, into which all those who make donations will be entered into. Prizes include tickets to Olympia, Badminton and Cheltenham.
“My injuries are quite life-changing, but for others theirs are even more so,” said Claire.
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She added thinking of these people and knowing the money she is raising will go towards trying to find a cure for paralysis will keep her going.
Claire first grabbed national headlines in 2012 when she walked the London Marathon route in a robotic suit.
Since then, she has undertaken numerous fundraising challenges and has raised more than £590,000 for spinal research.
Visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/clairelomasgsr to support Claire
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