Two women from the Isle of Wight will make their London Marathon debuts this morning (Sunday).
Lucy Ellis from Shanklin and Jo Rees from St Helens will be among the 50,000 people racing 26.2 miles across the capital.
Lucy, aged 25, now lives and works in London's Southbank and spends her weekends and early mornings running along the Thames as part of her training.
During regular visits to the Island, she makes time to run along Shanklin seafront as part of a dedicated running regime.
Lucy told Isle of Wight Radio:
"I'm doing it as a personal challenge as it's something that has been on my bucket list for years, and now I live in London it feels even more exciting.
"It's been tough spending two to three hours running on my own at the weekends, and although I've completed several marathons in recent years, this is my first time doing the London Marathon."
Around 50,000 people will take part in this year's event, with Lucy one of 6,000 chosen by the annual ballot (which received more than 350,000 entries for 2022).
She explains:
"I've entered the London Marathon ballot five times prior to this without any success, so this year I did it again without too much expectancy.
"But when I got the email (in March) to say I had a space this year, I knew I wanted to put my all into it."
Jo, meanwhile, is dedicating each mile to a special person in memory of her uncle Mick and promoting them via the PLANETS Cancer Charity Facebook page.
Her JustGiving page has so far raised £1,420 for the charity out of a £3,000 target.
Jo said:
"After saying I would never run another marathon, losing several stone and then putting most of it back on again, I find myself training to run in London (this week.)"
"But these 26.2 miles are not about me, (they're about) raising awareness and money for PLANETS Cancer Charity, its doctors, research teams and patients and in memory of my Uncle Mick who lost his 17-year battle with cancer last year."
The largely flat London Marathon course is set around the River Thames, starting in Blackheath and finishing at the Mall.
Earlier this month, we reported on Dr David Henderson, an Island GP running the London Marathon to raise funds for the Isle of Wight Youth Trust.
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