A day out at the seaside turned into a triumph for Joannie Couture when she took on a full marathon as her first-ever competitive running event – and got through to the finish line.
“I absolutely loved the experience. Taking part in the Brighton Marathon on 6th April was magical and I wore my ME Association vest proudly!’” said the former French Canadian ice-hockey star.
She wasn't the fastest by any means. But she began it. And, my word, hours later she finished it!
While taking on a marathon so early in anyone’s running career is almost unheard of, Joannie knew the value of solid training for the event and had been working towards it ever since she failed to win a place in the London Marathon last year.
“I've always been very sporty and, as I approach my 40th this summer, wondered what new challenge I could take on to celebrate my birthday. That's when I thought of running a marathon and what better thing to do than try to raise money for charity?”
Joannie – supported at Brighton by her wife Sarah and daughter Rosie – chose to run the Brighton Marathon for both the ME Association and Cancer Research UK (CRUK).
“I knew I could do it but the training helps to develop a certain mindset. I was well prepared physically and mentally to get through to that point in the race when many runners hit the dreaded ‘wall’. For me, that came about 20 miles in.
“I told myself: ‘I know it’s difficult but this pain, my pain, is temporary. This is nothing compared to the agonising feeling of having cancer treatments or of having a lifelong medical condition such as ME.'
“I ran to raise money for Cancer Research UK in memory of my friend Ingrid Rousseau, my uncles Nelson Trachy and Fernand Fournier and my grandfather Eugène Pépin. I also wanted to run a marathon for my cancer survival friends Esther and Émilie”, she told us.
“While everybody knows about cancer, not many people know about ME/CFS.
Photos shows Joannie with her finisher's medal, with her wife Sarah and daughter Rosie and running past the Royal Pavilion in Brighton.
“In truth, I didn’t know much about the condition until I met my good friend Sophie last year. She has been affected by ME since the age of 15 and it has profoundly affected her life.
“Despite all that, she is a very strong, determined and resilient woman and I truly respect her. I really hope that by raising money for the ME association, I can help by spreading knowledge, awareness and understanding about the condition.
“So far, I have raised £1,024 for the ME Association and a similar amount for CRUK. So I’m very chuffed!”, she added.
Joannie is working in Surrey as a nanny to three ‘football-mad’ young boys who are away at a half-term soccer camp this week. She will reach her 40th birthday on 9th July.
She said she would like to do it all over again! ”I will definitely look at doing another sporting event in order to raise money for the ME Association in the near future.”
You’d be very welcome, Joannie. Thank you for what you’ve raised for the ME Association, and please keep in touch.
If you would like to support Joannie’s fundraiser for the ME Association, please visit:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/joannie-couture
Tony Britton
Senior Fundraising Volunteer, The ME Association
tony.britton@meassociation.org.uk Mob: 07393 805566
