Jamie Achieves his Half-Marathon Dreams

Jamie Knox, a 22 year old who is supported by Community Integrated Care in Edinburgh, achieved his dreams in March, when he completed the famous Silverstone Half Marathon.

Jamie has autism and joined our Howden Hall service two years ago. As our team got to know him, they recognised that he had lots of energy and was happiest when active, but his challenges with social situations meant that he would not enjoy team sports. So, they helped Jamie access his local gym, a space where he could set himself personal goals and focus on himself without worrying about others. With their support he discovering a passion for running.

Over the course of the year he built up his fitness and signed up to take on the 2015 Edinburgh Subway Helping Hearts 5km Race. Completing this was a significant achievement for Jamie, with him participating in a busy event with thousands of other people. This success was enabled by the person-centred support of his team, who used reassurance techniques and provided lots of guidance to help him prepare.

Having competed the 5k race, Jamie wanted to take on a much bigger challenge. His team supported him to take on the 2016 Adidas Silverstone Half Marathon in 13^th March. This event is one of the highlights of the UK running calendar and attracts almost 8000 other runners. His dedicated team ran the race alongside him, giving him support and encouragement throughout each of the 26,000 steps of the race.  Together they completed the race in a fantastic two hours, 47 minutes.

Jamie’s Support Worker, Mike Thomson, says: “Jamie has achieved incredible things since taking up running, and the sport has given him a new confidence and passion in life. We were honoured to be running alongside him, helping him to succeed with this great ambition. It was incredible to see him proudly wear the medal around his neck at this famous racetrack”