Side by side to meet the challenge of the marathon

Apr 8 2004 By Jenny Parkin, The Huddersfield Daily Examiner

Two's company - courageous cancer-suffering sportswoman Jane Tomlinson is getting help with her training from a Huddersfield academic. JENNY PARKIN reports

JANE Tomlinson got a standing ovation at Huddersfield University when she picked up her honorary degree.

But on that big day back in November, she also made one particular friend - who's proving a real boost to her gruelling training schedule.

Dr Nicki Latham, head of health and sports studies at the university's school of human and health sciences, is now Jane's running partner.

As someone who's conducted research into the benefits of exercise for people with chronic illness, Nicki is especially well placed to help her.

Both women live near Leeds - mother-of-three Jane, 40, in Rothwell, and Nicki in Otley - and for the past couple of months they've been meeting up for weekly training.

Jane's next challenge is the London Marathon - but it's a relatively minor feat compared with a 35-day tandem bike ride she's planning from Rome to Leeds with her brother, Luke, starting on May 3.

The pair will rack up 2,500 miles at a rate of up to 120 miles a day - with no rest days in between.

Jane says: "Whenever anyone sees a tandem, they know it's us straight away - though apparently sales of two-seater bikes rose last year after we were on TV so much!"

She has now raised almost £500,000 for charity through her sporting exploits, which have included a Lands End to John O'Groats cycle ride and marathons and triathlons.

Her goal is to raise £1m.

Jane, who is suffering from terminal cancer, was told she had only months to live three and a half years ago.

She says: "I'm having my ups and downs and I'm undergoing chemotherapy at the moment.

"At times the training is a struggle - I'm running and cycling and swimming five days a week." Jane is also still holding down a full-time job as a hospital radiographer.

But asked how on earth she does it, Jane simply says: "Everything I do is achievable.

"People say: `I'd never be able to run a marathon' that's not the way I look at it. You can focus on running a mile, then five miles, then 10. It's a case of setting gradual goals."

Jane has usually trained alone for her challenges but now she's got Nicki, 38, by her side.

The pair got chatting at the graduation ceremony and have built up a friendship.

Nicki, a keen runner who's completed marathons, says: "I was asked to be her chaperon on the day and we found we got on well.

"When I offered mine and the department's expertise, Jane took us up on the offer of training and physiotherapy support."

Jane says: "It's good to have company on a run. I normally go on my own. We chat along the way - Nicki usually talks as we run uphill and I speak on the downhills!"

Nicki researched the benefits of physical activity for those battling chronic illness, and how best to urge people to be more active, for her PhD. She says: "For some, being diagnosed with a chronic or terminal illness can be a cue not to make the effort to take exercise.

"There's a feeling that people who are ill should be wrapped up in cotton wool. But staying active can enhance your mental and social well-being as well as physical health - creating a better quality of life all together."

Jane didn't take up running until after she was diagnosed.

Nicki says: "She's so inspirational, a fantastic role model for women.

"What makes Jane extraordinary is that she's so courageous and lives her life with such dignity.

"She's able to do the things she does by taking one step at a time.

"Jane challenges people's notions of death. She's showing everyone that if you want something enough you can go out and achieve it."

Jane's Appeal is set to help a handful of charities. They are Sparks, which is dedicated to medical research into conditions affecting babies and young children, Cancer Research UK, the Paediatric Acute Services at Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust, where Jane became a radiographer and still works, and Hannah House, a care home for children in Rothwell, Leeds.

Send donations to the Yorkshire Building Society, 46-48 Commercial Street, Rothwell, Leeds, LS26 OAW, quoting the Jane Tomlinson Appeal and account number 5349471430.

To donate online, go to www.justgiving.com/janesappeal.