Serious side to Schapelle’s fun run

CONVICTED drug smuggler Schapelle Corby was close to tears yesterday as she revealed how mental health issues were “close to my heart”.

After avoiding the media for most of the past 15 months, Corby was on a rare outing in the public spotlight at the Bridge to Brisbane fun run when she spoke exclusively to News Corp.

Corby, who has battled severe mental health issues since being convicted in 2005 of smuggling 4.2kg of marijuana into Indonesia and spending nine years in jail, promoted the run to her 183,000 Instagram followers as a way to raise money for Suicide Prevention Australia.

Asked why she had chosen that charity, she looked away and seemed near to tears.

“That’s a good question, it’s really deep for me,” she said. “Mental health is something that is very close to my heart.”

A page linked to her run had raised nearly $1150 by lunchtime yesterday and she said she was proud of that effort

“We’re really glad we did it,” she said, getting a confirming nod from running partner Chelsea Kennedy.

Ms Corby said the pair had “doggie jogged” their way around the course after entering in the walking category.

Asked how she was settling back in to Australia after being deported from Indonesia in May last year, she shook her head and declined to say if she had any plans or projects in the pipeline.

“We’re going to jog again,” Corby said, as she upped the pace back to a doggie jog for the final 500m of the route.

In March, she told New Idea magazine she was living “day to day” in Logan, south of Brisbane, with her mum and was working on some projects.