Sara Cox has finished her epic 135-mile run at a soggy Calverley Golf Club – having raised more than £7.6m for Children in Need.
She set off on her mission to get Children in Need mascot Pudsey Bear to his home town of Pudsey on Monday. Sara covered 135 miles on foot, a distance of five marathons across five days and four counties.
The final day saw her pass through Horsforth, along the Ring Road and through to the finishing line at Calverley Golf Club. Hundreds of people lined the roadside.
“I’ve never had shapely calves in my life” she told Radio 2’s Scott Mills after reaching the finishing line. “But I have now because they are so swollen, it looks like I’ve been hit with a bat.
“It’s just been the maddest, most painful, wonderful thing I’ve ever, ever done.”
Reaction to Sara’s achievement has poured in on social media.
“Well done Sara – what a warrior – what a legend – what a woman – so inspiring – rest up now. You should be so incredibly proud of everything you have achieved,” said one.
Another added: “Sara you have blown me away with what you have done. What an achievement! Great to see so many people come out to support you!”
She has now raised £7.6 million, and if you’d like to support Sara with a text or online donation, you can find all the details at bbc.co.uk/sara.
It’s a shame she finished 2 miles short in Calverley.
It may well be a shame Jeremy. But I think you must have hit ‘send’ before you completed your comment.
I’m sure you would have added ‘but congratulations to Sara for raising an astonishing £7.6m for such a good cause(think the figure’s just been reported by BBC News as over £9million) and for completing an inspirational 135-mile trek. What a fantastic achievement!’
Or something similar.
You’re welcome.
You beat me to it, John! Well said. So many keyboard warriors all too willing to knock and make sarcastic comments. Alright, it may not technically be Pudsey, but there’s a bigger story here beyond petty gripes over a couple of miles for heavens sake.
Just because someone states the obvious that the walk was to do with Pudsey but for some odd reason, they completed it 2 miles short in Calverley, that doesn’t make them a keyboard warrior and only a case of stating what I guess quite a few people (myself included) as to why walk 135 miles with Pudsey bear on your back, then not quite get to Pudsey which would have been more suitable, more people turning out (despite the rain) and make more sense.
Its like running 26 miles of a marathon, then stopping short with 385 yards to go, makes no sense.
I don’t deny that technically he’s right. Of course he is!
With respect I think you’ve missed the point John Smith and I are trying to make – that the story is bigger than the petty parochialism displayed both here and particularly on Facebook (there have been hundreds of such comments crying out in indignation!).
For me it just seems petty to focus on whether it actually finished in Pudsey or not (it was in the old borough of Pudsey til 1974) when Sara has undergone a gruelling schedule in atrocious weather and raised over £9 million for such a fantastic cause.
Maybe John smith expressed it better than I did.
But hey, if it’s all about Pudsey versus Calverley for you then each to their own. All the best.
What an achievement . I don’t think I fully appreciate quite how hard this must have been and it took so much mental strength . How her body must have ached and hurt but her mind in the long hours alone would have been a battle too . So well done even if you finished in Calverley . I live nearby and so it’s not far away and it doesn’t matter in the great scheme of this humungus achievement . New respect for you Sara Cox but there also many others who have done great things for this great cause too thank you
Incredible achievent !!! 135 miles over 5 days in appalling conditions WOW WOW WOW lady thats 50 yrs old ‘ not some young ultra marathon athlete whos in her 20’s. It really is an unbelievble feat to do. Massive massive well done sara cox
Mute point ‘ calverley was under the old pudsey borough till 74 , yes i would of loved to seen sara cox hitting pudsey park ‘ couple of miles on from CGC , but heyy ‘ lets not distract from a one ladys super human efforts ‘ sara cox she’s from the wrong side of pennine mountains ‘ on this occassion i’ll cheer this fearless & amazing lady to the rafters from lancashire ‘ which is quite strange coming from a dyed in the wool yorkshireman but massively well earned well done lass ‘ you done grand!