A physicist engineer raised over £3,000 running the London marathon after his wife was diagnosed with a heart condition.

Nick Shaw, 47, from Abingdon, took to the streets of London on Sunday, April 23, to raise funds for the British Heart Foundation (BHF).

Mr Shaw completed the gruelling 26.2-mile course in four hours and 59 minutes, raising £3,700 for lifesaving research.

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In total, the event raised more than £1.5 million for the charity.

Mr Shaw took on the challenge because his wife Michelle was diagnosed with a heart condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).

HCM is a disease of the heart muscle, where the muscle wall of the heart becomes thickened, which can make it harder for the heart to pump blood around the body.

Mr Shaw said: “My wife, Michele, was diagnosed exactly a year ago with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

“She is now one of the seven million people in the UK living with heart and circulatory disease.

“She has an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), which helps monitor her heart beating and will intervene if necessary.

“This is just one of the amazing research projects the British Heart Foundation funds.”

Michelle, 65, was there supporting her husband on the day along with their son Pierre, and friends from France, who convinced him to take on the marathon challenge.

Upon crossing the finish line, Mr Shaw said: “Taking part in the 2023 TCS London Marathon for the British Heart Foundation was such a huge challenge and an incredible experience.

“The atmosphere around the course was electric and it was amazing having so many people cheering me on; made me even more determined to get to the finish line.   

“The research that the foundation does makes such a difference to the 7.6 million people in the UK living with heart and circulatory diseases.

“So, I’m proud to know I’m doing as much as I can to support their amazing work to help fund the next big scientific breakthrough.”

Karen McDonnell, Senior Events Manager at the BHF, added: “It’s fantastic to see Mr Shaw’s courage and determination in helping us fund lifesaving research.

“Without the dedication of our team BHF runners and the commitment of people like Mr Shaw, we wouldn’t be able to fund research that has already broken new ground, revolutionised treatments and transformed the lives of millions of people in the UK.  

“The stories of why our amazing supporters take part never fails to amaze me and it was incredible to see Mr Shaw and 700 others take on such a gruelling challenge to help save and improve lives.” 

 

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This story was written by Matthew Norman, he joined the team in 2022 as a Facebook community reporter.

Matthew covers Bicester and focuses on finding stories from diverse communities.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Matthew.norman@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @OxMailMattN1