A DAD from Warwick made a marathon effort in honour of his little boy who was diagnosed with cancer at three-years-old.
Birgir Sigmundsson ran the London Marathon in aid of CLIC Sargent, the cancer charity for children and young people which supported his son Jonas and family during his illness.
Jonas has now finished treatment, and is attending pre-school.
Birgir, who is a teacher, said: “It was a great experience. I had been dealing with injuries during the training which prevented me from doing longer runs so it was really hard, however, the crowd was absolutely amazing and encouraged me to carry on even though my legs begged me to stop.
“When I was struggling I visualised Jonas and said to myself that I was doing this for him. It was interesting how that seemed to fill up the tank every time I said it, only temporarily though unfortunately. The crowd was amazing and cheered me on by shouting my name – that got me through the finishing line.”
Birgir ran the marathon with Jonas’ uncle Steve. Together the pair raised nearly £6,000 for the charity.
Birgir added: “Jonas is doing amazingly well and is just like any other four-year old. We are moving on with our lives and trying to be hopeful and positive and I’m really grateful that he is alive and happy.”
