This year, I’m running the Irish Life Dublin Marathon 2026 for Spina Bifada Hydrocephalus Ireland and, in particular, one of the bravest 3 year olds I've met - Luca McDonald. Luca is the son of one of my closest friends, and he was born in 2023 just a few weeks before my own son. During the pregnancy, his parents found out that Luca had Spina Bifada - news that obviously came as an enormous shock. Spina Bifida is a challenging diagnosis that throws all life's 'normalities' into context - especially for a child. Soccer, soft play, playgrounds and even play-dates can be a challenge for Luca and his parents. From visiting Luca and his big brother Robbie, I've seen what true resilience and lust for life looks like. Luca always meets us at the door with a smile and a laugh, and never fails to find his way around the obstacles of day to day life - a truly happy and resourceful kid! For this marathon, I will run alongside Luca's Dad, Mikey and our other close friend Jonny. This 42km challenge will be a drop in the ocean and brief (hopefully under 4 hours!) when compared to Luca's challenges. But we want to show him how much he's loved and admired. His Dad, Mikey, never thought he'd run 10km - now he's taking on 42km. So I'm more than happy to endure the challenge with him for Luca. Any donations, big or small, are massively appreciated and will go a long way to our target in support of Spina Bifada Hydrocephalus Ireland. Congratulations to Mikey and Eilis for their own fundraising so far!