A woman who has had two emergency eye operations is aiming to run her first 26.2 miles at the Edinburgh Marathon on May 28th.
Gail Burns, from Edinburgh, is running to fundraise for sight loss charity, RNIB Scotland, who supported her father in his diagnosis of Age-Related Macular Degeneration just two years ago. The condition, which affects over 300,000 people in Scotland, leaves him with limited central vision.
Gail was initially offered a charity place in the London Marathon in 2022, but was unaware that she faced sight issues herself:
“I had to have an emergency eye operation for a detached retina and then a second operation in 2023,” she says. “I sadly had to pull out of the London Marathon twice due to these operations and recovery.”
Gail has previously run a half marathon but due to pain in her hamstrings, was advised to stop running nine years ago. However, on finding a motivating Physio and Personal Trainer, Gail started training for her first marathon.
“I’ve met a lot of people with sight impairments- all very resilient and inspiring – from my Dad, other runners, to RNIB staff and advocates raising awareness of sight issues. I’m pleased to finally be running the Edinburgh Marathon on 28 May for RNIB and I also to have a place in London for April 2024!
“By the time May 28th comes around, I will have been marathon training for 1 year. This is due to stopping and starting during my training plan due to the eye issues and operation recovery times. Training has been tough at times but as it’s my first marathon, my goal is just to get around injury-free!”
* You can support Gail by donating via her JustGiving web-page at: