Five friends in marathon run in aid of MS Society

Five friends in marathon run in aid of MS Society

21 February 2024

A BALLYNAHINCH man is running the Belfast Marathon this May with his four best friends to raise money for a charity dear to his heart.

Jareth McCardell has enlisted the help of friends Michael Reynolds, Dylan Brady, Andrew King and Ross Connolly, to run relays of the 26-mile marathon in an effort to raise £1,500 for the MS Society.

Having lost his father Alan ‘Joe’ McCardell when he was two years old, 24 years ago, Jareth said it was a decision that made sense.

“There’s always been events in my father’s memory,” Jareth explained.

“He was from Killyleagh and there is an annual pool tournament held in his honour called The Joe McCardell Memorial Cup.

“I lost him when I was very young and his death is not something I have spoken about very often even to the rest of the guys, but I am so thankful they were willing to run for this charity.”

Jareth continued: “We did discuss the idea of each of us running for our own individual charities, but when I mentioned the MS Society, everyone was immediately onboard.

“The support from everyone has been amazing. People who knew my father have reached out and given money to my grandparents for the donations – it’s exceeded my expectations.”

Jareth and his friends have been close since 2009 and were in the same form class at Down High School, with some of the guys knowing each other for over 20 years.

Jareth ran the Belfast half marathon last year and has since been running a series of Saturday morning and afternoon Parkruns throughout Co Down.

“I still find it bizarre that I have taken to running,” Jareth said. “Growing up I always hated the idea of running and would try my best to avoid it, but the benefits of it are brilliant, both physically and mentally.”

The 26 year-old’s friends, Dylan and Ross, also spoke about the benefits of running.

“I’ve been running for about three months now,” said Ross. “It is something I’m really glad Jareth took up first, because it’s something I definitely would not have considered doing it by myself.

“We’ve went to some of the Parkruns together. Some are 5km but the social aspect of it is amazing and in many ways it is its own community.”

The friends group have gradually increased their distances in preparation for the marathon. Each relay of the marathon covers a different distance, some longer than others but the shorter distances include hills and large inclines.

The friends have decided to randomise who runs each leg.

“The training has been really fun,” Dylan added. “Jareth is definitely the enforcer of the group and ensures that none of us are slacking – but sometimes that’s what you need.

“Running a marathon with a group keeps you accountable because you don’t want to let the other lads down. When Jareth said about doing it for the MS Society I was immediately on board with it – we all were.”

Ross added: “It’s something that we know is dear to Jareth and it’s an honour for us to do this with him.”

Jareth said that both his friends and the support in general has been amazing and they all want to  send a collective ‘thank you’ to everyone who has donated thus far.

To donate to the MS Society, the friends set up a JustGiving link which can be found at www.justgiving.com and searching for ‘Running The Belfast Marathon Relay For the MS Society.