Ceri at the London Marathon

I had a great day and have raised over £650 for Battersea Cats and Dogs so far.

I beat my last effort in 2013 by a minute! At the end on the race I bumped into Chris Evans (see photo) who had managed to keep his marathon plans secret from the nation until the last minute!

The photo of us went onto the BBC Radio 2 Chris Evans Facebook page along with his others and he and my brother, Dave Parsons from British Cycling, completed it in the same time.

David and I ran together from the point our routes converged at around mile 4 to mile 11 where he ran ahead at a faster pace than me!

I saw many inspirational people and the atmosphere was fantastic with an amazing crowd and volunteers helping to pull you on when needed. A brilliantly organised event from start to finish. I was so proud to be a part of it.

I want to say thanks again to all the people who supported me (sponsored me, put up with me, helped me shape myself into a momentary athlete) including long-suffering physiotherapist Philippa Butler!

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