Lee's on the run for SCIAF

Coatbridge man Lee Dornan had never run further than 5k until February but now he’s all set for the Edinburgh marathon – after a colleague signed him up!

Lee (34) is an Accountant for SCIAF and has visited Zambia in the course of his work. He will run the race in the capital on Sunday 28 May.

He said:

“That trip last year changed my life. I had known about SCIAF’s work for years, at school, at church, but only when I saw it for myself was I able to fully appreciate what it was all about.

“Once I made my mind up to run the marathon, there was no other charity in my mind.”

In saying that, Lee didn’t really make his mind up to run a marathon, his colleague Jonathan did that for him.

Lee said:

“Jonathan and I run a bit and with other colleagues James, Mark, and Ben. We make up a lunchtime running club call the Green River. I had talked to Jonathan about running a marathon and how it had always been on my mind.

“One morning in the office, he asked for my personal email address. It was only then I realised he had signed me up and paid the fee – so I just had to get on with it. I would probably never have got around to it myself.”

The longest distance Lee – who is married with three daughters – had run before this year was 5k.

He said:

“I wasn’t even really fit. I had given up the gym last year and had never been a runner. I have asthma, so never really been into cardio exercise. But I’ve just had to build up and the longest I have run so far is 18 miles, which felt horrific. I just hope that adrenalin and good wishes carry me through on the day.”

So far Lee has raised around £1,000.