Northampton primary school teacher runs more than 70km in seven hours for MS Society

A primary school teacher from Northampton ran all four races at the Edinburgh Marathon Festival to raise vital funds for the MS Society.

Emma Carter completed the 5km, 10km, half marathon and full marathon events over the weekend (May 28 and May 29).

The 33-year-old clocked up more than 70 kilometres in seven hours, seven minutes in honour of her dad, Graham, who lives with multiple sclerosis (MS). Graham was diagnosed with relapsing MS in 2011 and now uses a wheelchair full time.

Emma said: “Watching my dad deteriorate since his MS diagnosis made me want to raise money for MS research as we still have so much to learn and discover about the condition. I completed the London Marathon for the MS Society in 2019 and that really gave me the running bug.

“Since then I’ve taken on a number of challenges including an Ultra Marathon last year.

“I started training for this challenge – for the third time - in January 2022 and it’s the biggest I’ve taken on yet.

“It was tough and very emotional at the end but I’m so happy I managed it.”

MS damages nerves in your body and makes it harder to do everyday things, like walk, talk, eat and think.

Emma added: “Seeing the advancements in treatments over the last 10 years encourages me to keep fundraising for life-changing research. Even if it’s too late for my dad I hope other families won’t have to go through what he has.”

The MS Society is the UK’s biggest charity supporting people living with MS through research, campaigning and groups.

Mark Haymes community fundraising lead at the MS Society continued: “We’re so thankful for Emma’s amazing effort in taking on this challenge and all the fundraising she’s done for the MS Society already.

“We believe we can stop MS, and can see a future where nobody needs to worry about their condition getting worse.

“Thanks to brilliant supporters like Emma, we are closer to reaching this goal than ever before.”

Donate to Emma’s fundraising effort by visiting her JustGiving page.