A TEACHER at St John the Baptist School in Andover will be running the London Marathon for the first time to raise money for Catholic aid agency CAFOD.

Sophie Pearson, 32, of Ward Close in Andover will join over 37,000 runners in London on 13 April, 2014.

Sophie will be running with her two childhood friends, Lexi Rae and Kate Murelli. The trio have known each other since primary school.

Sophie said: “Running the London Marathon has always been something that I have wanted to do. Having been a spectator as a child and then more recently cheering my sister-in-law on, I was keen to enter the ballot.

“Kate, Lexi and I were all working on increasing our fitness at this point and all decided to be a little crazy and enter the ballot, this certainly did seem crazy when we had all built up running from nothing in 2013.

“We made a pact that we would support one another and perhaps try to go for charity places and fundraise together if we were unlucky in the ballot. Pretty much unheard of, but Lexi and Kate both got ballot places on a first time basis. I knew that this was too good an opportunity to pass up.

Sophie added: “As a teacher in a Catholic school, CAFOD does brilliant things to raise the awareness of children to realise that even by making small changes in our lives, we can help to make difference to those who need it most.”

You can still sponsor Sophie, Kate and Lexi via their Virgin Money Giving page at justgiving.com/ SophiePearson-KateMurelli- LexiRae.