Still trying to decide which charity you’d like to support for this year’s TCS London Marathon? Join Bowel Cancer UK and raise vital funds to help stop people from dying of bowel cancer.

As he is turning 70 this year, Mike Barnes decided that 2022 was his year to run the TCS London Marathon. What better way to mark a special milestone birthday? Mike certainly doesn’t consider himself a runner, which makes his challenge all the more inspiring!

Mike is running in memory of his daughter Laura Stephenson, who sadly lost her battle with bowel cancer in 2019. Laura was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer in April 2018 and was just 36 years old when she died. She left behind three young daughters, her husband Mark and many family members and friends who miss her dearly. Unfortunately, Laura’s diagnosis came too late, but Mike is determined to raise awareness of the disease and its signs and symptoms in the hope it can save others.

“I’m proud to be running the TCS London Marathon this year as part of #teambowelcancer,” says Mike. “I took the plunge and applied for a charity place as a way of remembering a person who showed fantastic courage throughout her illness. I’ve received amazing support so far from the events team and through the charity’s Facebook support group. I’m making lots of virtual running friends already, which is great.

“Supporting Bowel Cancer UK is a real privilege and a great way to remember Laura. Knowing I’m raising funds to help others affected by the disease gives me a great sense of pride as well as comfort on the difficult days. I want to make my family proud – especially my granddaughters – and I can’t wait to see them cheering me on this October. The funds I’m raising will be part of Laura’s legacy and I know her daughters will be able to look back on all the amazing fundraising in her memory and see how special their mummy was to so many people.”

Bowel cancer is the second biggest cancer killer in the UK. However, it is treatable and curable – especially if diagnosed early. As the UK's leading bowel cancer charity, we're determined to save lives and improve the quality of life of everyone affected by bowel cancer.

As a member of #teambowelcancer for this year’s TCS London Marathon, you’ll receive amazing benefits, including:

• a running vest to help you stand out from the crowds
• exclusive access to our Virtual Running Club training programme and an invitation to our training day
• a dedicated Facebook group to connect with other #teambowelcancer runners
• fundraising support from our events team
• support from our amazing cheer squads around the course
• an invite to our post-race party near the Finish Line, where you can refresh and get a well-earned sports massage

Whether you’d like to use your ballot place to join us or apply for one of our charity places, we’d love to hear from you. To find out more, click here.