St Andrews runners get set for London Marathon events

The team, made up of two local running groups - Staart St Andrews and Anster Allsorts from Anstruther – will be joined in the race on 7 April by Danny Rooney, a volunteer puppy raiser for Guide Dogs. Six runners will then enter the full London Marathon two weeks later.

Danny said: “We have runners of all different abilities and ages taking part, from people in their early 20s to late 60s.

“Over the years all our runners have met my guide dog puppies in training. They see them arrive as very small pups and over the next 12 months grow up into adult dogs, ready to join the Guide Dogs training school and go on to change the lives of blind and partially sighted people throughout the UK.

“The runners know that by fundraising for Guide Dogs they are able to help people with sight loss. Having a guide dog enables those with a vision impairment to get out and about and lead an independent life. I can imagine that might feel the same way we do when we cross the finish line in London.

“This year we have already held fundraising runs and a club ceilidh. We also plan to have a coffee morning, bucket collection and hopefully a quiz night to raise funds for Guide Dogs and meet our target of £7,000 for the half marathon participants and £10,000 for those doing the full 26.2 miles."

Anne Rowse, Community Fundraising Relationship Manager at Guide Dogs, said: “We are so grateful to Danny and the team for their support.

“We rely on donations to continue our life-changing work, helping people with sight loss to live the life they choose.

“Danny is a long-time volunteer and fundraiser and we would like to pay thanks to him and everyone involved. We wish them the very best of luck with the half marathon and their upcoming events.”

You can support the team via their Just Giving page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/eastfife-london-landmarks-guidedogs-2024

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