Cancer counselling charity We Hear You (WHY) would like to thank its 17-strong team of Bath Half Marathon participants for supporting We Hear You under very difficult circumstances during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Bath Half went ahead on Sunday 15th March, although WHY took the decision not to have a presence on the day and some of the team also chose not to attend.

Several travelled to Bath and took part in the official event, while others have arranged their own local half marathon routes.

WHY supporter Beth supported her four friends to plot a 13.1 mile route for their own virtual half marathon in Keinton Mandeville:

"The Keinton team were disappointed not to attend Bath Half, but we made the very best of it - with great teamwork from runners and cheerleaders we smashed our own Keinton Half. A driver followed runners throughout offering drink and jelly babies and goody bags, rosettes and flowers were given to all runners at the end. We even had a string finish line covered in balloons.

Although the run was extremely wet, the runners smashed their times and I was super proud to cheer them on and give such a huge amount to WHY. We also had super little helpers who loved writing 'well done' cards and making support banners."

Craig, another regular WHY supporter, ran with his fiancée Kelly and said: "We both really enjoyed it despite the weather - it was very wet to say the least. It was Kelly's first half marathon and to not run would have been heartbreaking for her after months of training that had been put in. We completed it in 2 hours 20 minutes which was a personal best for myself and now looking forward to next year."

Local legend Cheryl Sprinkler, aka Ginny Adams of theatre company Rare Species, will be running her virtual Bath Half on Sunday 22nd March with her friend Charlotte:

"Team Mojo Moves will be running a 13 mile route around Frome starting at Southfields at 10am and taking in many of Frome's central roads so keep an eye out for a double dose of shocking pink Lycra and give them a cheer and a wave."

Fundraising Officer Helen White says: "We want to give our Team WHY runners a huge hug and a massive pat on the back for carrying on through what has been a truly tricky time. Unfortunately, neither of those is advisable at the moment…so we give you a very loud virtual cheer instead.

The money you've raised is going to be even more important as we, like all charities, enter challenging and uncertain times. We'll post all the runners' fundraising pages on our social media in the next week or so, so please give generously. We're busy thinking of other ways to keep you entertained and raise some money for WHY, so watch this space!"

WHY is continuing to offer counselling by phone or online to anyone over 12 throughout the coronavirus outbreak, although no face-to-face sessions are available. To refer yourself for support, please email [email protected].