Kilkenny duo embark on marathon challenge for worthy charities
Nicole de Villiers and her daughter Akira are raising funds and training for the Dublin Marathon
A mother and daughter are embarking on a personal running journey in memory of their father and grandfather, who both completed epic running feats in their lifetimes.
Nicole de Villiers, who is originally from South Africa, and her daughter Akira Cox (20) both live in Castlecomer in North Kilkenny. The pair are training to run in the Irish Life Dublin Marathon this October.
"I am running in memory of my father Roy Mann who passed away from Alzheimer’s disease in December 2016,” says Nicole.
"My Dad ran nine Comrades marathons – the world’s oldest and longest ultramarathon, 89 kilometres through the hills of KwaZule-Natal in South Africa. Alzheimer’s took him before before he could compete his milestone tenth.
"The Dublin marathon is my official qualifying race to return to South Africa for the 100th Comrades marathon – the centenary edition – on June 13, 2027, where I will finish the tenth race for him. I am also raising vital funds for the Alzheimer Society of Ireland in his memory,” she added.
Nicole previously ran a half marathon in 2018 and is looking forward to taking on her first full marathon in Dublin in October.
Her daughter Akira is also planning to run the Dublin City Marathon in honour of her grandfather George Alfred Cox who passed away in January 2017 after a courageous battle with Stage 4 colon cancer. She will be raising funds for Recovery Haven Cancer Support.
George completed an incredible 14 Comrades marathons and his granddaughter Akira is running to honour his endurance, his spirit and his memory and is also raising money for a cancer charity.
"We are training together through every early morning, every long kilometre and every hard day – using our family history to fuel a multigenerational goal that we believe will resonate deeply with others,” Nicole says.
"We are running to raise awareness and to raise funds both for Alzheimers and colon cancer.”
The pair are both training and are great motivators for each other: "The training is getting there; we have a 10k at the end of July, and we are hoping to do the half marathon for the Medieval Marathon in Kilkenny in September before the Dublin Marathon,” she says. “At the moment we are training three to four times a week.”
To donate to the fundraiser for the Alzheimer Society of Ireland search for Nicole de Villiers, or for Recovery Haven search Akira Cox on eventmaster.ie.
To donate to Akira’s fundraiser for Recovery Haven click here
To donate to Nicole’s fundraiser for The Alzheimer’s Society click here