Alistdair Smith, Technical Delivery Manager at Oxygen Finance, ran his first marathon last month. In addition to his sporting achievement, Alistdair also raised vital funds for his chosen charity, which benefited from Oxygen Finance’s Charity Sponsorship Matching.

We spoke to Alistdair to find out more…

Tell us about your decision to run a marathon

“I signed up for my first marathon as I wanted a challenge for this year. I’ve run 10ks in the past and half marathons, so this would definitely be a test. Considering my capability at the time, and the training I needed for that kind of distance, I decided to hold it towards the end of the year and entered Chester Marathon which was on 2nd October.”

It’s a great challenge. When did you decide to run for charity?

“My colleagues at Oxygen Finance encouraged me to run for charity and volunteered their support. I’d mentioned the challenge and the training, and the team here really got behind me.

“When I found out about Oxygen’s new Charity Sponsorship Matching to double sponsorship raised, it gave me even more of an impetus to use the challenge to raise funds for a good cause. The scheme is open to all Oxygen employees and is part of their ongoing commitment to Social Value.

“Knowing that the funds would be matched made it easier to ask friends and family to help me fundraise as the overall total would then be more beneficial to the charity.”

You chose to run for St. Luke’s Hospice in Cheshire. Can you tell us a little bit more about them?

“St. Luke’s Hospice supports people living with life-limiting illnesses, providing expert care in a positive and supportive environment. I’ve seen first-hand the impact the charity has had. St. Luke’s is a charity that is local to me, and they’ve helped a friend and family members in the past. The care given by St. Luke’s was excellent and I really wanted to do something that meant more people would benefit from their support in future.”

How did it go on the day?

“The marathon itself was painful so it was good to have the extra incentive. I’d only run half marathon distance before, and my legs definitely knew that! Afterwards they just went to jelly.

“I had a target in mind, but it was a hard slog and I really had to push myself through the second half. Knowing that I’d committed to doing this for charity and that I had the support of so many people, including my colleagues at Oxygen, really helped – the fear of not finishing was highly motivating!”

Charity Sponsorship Matching helps our colleagues and the good causes that they support, and is just one of a range of initiatives as part of our commitment to delivering social value for clients, colleagues, and the community.

Congratulations to Alistdair for completing his first marathon from all the team here at Oxygen Finance!