Peter's London Marathon for Sport in Mind

In February 2020, the Crocombe family sadly lost their beloved father, husband, brother, friend and teacher - Paul Crocombe, to suicide. Since then, the family have been on a journey to raise awareness, learn and fundraise in the mental health space - and a charity which has become close to their hearts over this time is Sport in Mind.

As a teacher and avid sportsman who inspired many thousands of children on and off the field during his life, Sport in Mind epitomise everything that Peter’s dad stood for, with their goal being to improve the lives of those suffering with mental illnesses through the power of sport and exercise.

In memory of his Dad, Peter ran an ultra-marathon and so began a journey which has seen the Crocombe family and their friends raise over £70,000 for Sport in Mind.

With the family’s blessing, Sport in Mind launched the Mr. Crocombe Legacy in Paul’s name. The aim is for every child and young person to transition into adulthood with enhanced understanding of mental health problems and the benefits sport and physical activity can have on their mental well-being.

This year, Peter completed his first official marathon in his home city of London to raise further funds for Sport in Mind in his father's name.

“In amongst lots of other sport, running has been an escape and a tool to help me process my grief through this journey. Through my Garmin watch, I worked out I've run an average of 25 mins a day in the 567 days since Dad passed away.

In every one of those 25 mins, I've had Dad shouting his encouragement over my shoulder; and for the 42km of the London Marathon, I plan to give it my all with him watching from the sidelines.”

Peter completed the London Marathon in an incredible time of 02:56:08 and raised over £3.5k for the charity. It is an honour for us to celebrate this achievement with Peter and Sport in Mind - and we’re looking forward to further supporting the charity in the future.