Marathon run will boost cardiac charity
COMMUNITY conscious crimper Scott Bailye is counting down the days until he tackles his first ever marathon.
The Earl Shilton salon owner will be running the London Marathon on St George’s Day, Sunday April 23.
His chosen charity is Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY), an emotive cause for Scott as in 2013 one of his apprentices Courtney Strugnell almost died following a series of heart attacks.
It was later discovered her family had a history of heart problems and had this been known a scan could have revealed her susceptibility and preventative treatment could have been offered.
The idea for the fundraising run evolved after Scott had begun taking personal training sessions to build up his fitness.
He said: “I watched Eddie Izzard complete his epic marathons and I’d always watched the London Marathon on the TV.
“I suppose it was a dream to actually run a marathon myself, although when I first started training I couldn’t run a mile.
“I wanted to give something back to the community also so I decided to run for Cardiac Risk in the Young.
“Four years ago our apprentice Courtney had successfully secured a place as one of 20 students from 200 to represent her country and our salon during a two week trip to Malta.
“It was an amazing opportunity but after completing the first week she suffered a heart attack.”
The 23-year-old experienced four heart attacks, suffering brain dam- age as a result.
She was in intensive care in a Maltese hospital for eight weeks then airlifted back to England where she spent some time in the neurological unit at University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire before being transferred to a rehabilitation centre.
Scott said: “It was simply devastating for all her family and friends and for her salon family too.”
Now Scott hopes to both raise awareness of the condition and amass as much money as possible for the charity which supports young people diagnosed with cardiac conditions.
It also offers bereavement care to families, develops screening programmes and funds vital medical research into the condition.
Scott added said: “The training is tough but enjoyable and the guys down at Saxon Fitness keep me on my toes.
“It will be an amazing achievement for me and I’m looking forward to seeing Buckingham Palace on my lefthand side so I know I’m coming to the end of the race. “I think it will be quite euphoric.” Anyone who wants to support Scott can visit his Virgin Money Giving page.