A man who has broken his wrist has said it will not stop him from trying to raise as much money as possible for charity. Solomon Rackham, 28, of Montpelier, is joining more than 30 other runners with the aim of raising at least £2,000 for national youth work charity UK Youth by tackling the 2025 London Marathon.
With a background in both research and working with young people, UK Youth is a natural fit for Solomon, where he works as an evaluation and learning manager, leading initiatives on a range of programmes and grants.
He said: “I’m doing it for the challenge and fun of it really. I thought there’s never going to get a better opportunity to run the marathon and also doing it for UK Youth, where I’ve been for almost three years.
“It felt like a potentially nice way to mark the milestone. I think it is really helpful when you’ve worked with young people. I draw on that experience a lot when I’m designing evaluations or analysing data, because it helps if you can imagine the humans behind it.”
The 2025 London Marathon, on Sunday, April 27, will be Solomon’s first marathon, having only taken up regular running in 2023 after swapping his hometown of London for Bristol.
He said: “I started running more regularly when I moved to Bristol in September 2023. I did the Bristol Half Marathon in May 2024 and I said then, there’s no way I’m ever doing a marathon.
“However, one of my former colleagues had run the London Marathon for UK Youth and I had flirted with the idea of entering the ballot for a place before – although when I did enter and didn’t get a place, I was so pleased. But when our fundraising team offered the charity places, I realised how prized these places are and what an amazing opportunity it is.”
Despite stepping up his running since leaving London for Bristol, Solomon admitted that training has not been without its hiccups, not least a broken wrist sustained in a fall from his bike in January, which put his running on hold temporarily.
He said: “Training has not gone well. I broke my wrist in January, so it’s still in a cast. That kind of messed up my training plan. I tried to jump straight back in and then started getting a bit of knee pain, but I’m confident it’ll be fine.
“I’m hoping that the energy of the day and the adrenaline will help me through. I’m not going to try to do it very quickly. I’m just going to trot along. I grew up in London. Since I’ve moved away, I’ve loved going back and I think to see the city via the marathon is going to be quite symbolic.
“One of my colleagues said the London Marathon is a bit like the FA Cup of marathons – everyone gets involved, it’s a nice family day, you’ve got support the whole way around. I’m looking forward to the atmosphere, the UK Youth cheer squad at mile 19 and, of course, the finish line.”
To sponsor Solomon, see here.