The University of Sussex Netball Club aims to run the length of Britain to raise money for NHS charities.
The team has so far raised more than £4,000 for charities providing support to NHS staff, volunteers and patients.
Over 10 days from Monday 13 April to Thursday 23 April, the team of students is running 1,400 kilometres, the length of the route from Land’s End to John O’Groats.
The team members, aged 18 to 23, are aiming to compete just under 5km per person per day, each using their individual hour of daily exercise.
Georgia Lambert and Eve Moseby – recently elected as the club’s presidents for 2020-21 – wanted to find a way to support the NHS and keep the team fit during the coronavirus lockdown.
They said: “We were shocked by the positive response and number of girls who said they wanted to partake. We really wanted to give back something to our NHS who are working so hard.”
Four of the team have stayed in Brighton, completing their runs on the seafront, in Hove Park and Preston Park.
Others are doing their bit from places such as Teesside, Cardiff, Devon, Surrey and Hertfordshire, with all of them staying close to home while some are using treadmills.
Georgia Lambert said: “We think it has really brought the club together. We are all constantly messaging on our group chat and sending in sweaty selfies and motivation to each other and I’m sure we will all celebrate together when we are back in Brighton.
“We are also using the Strava app to collect the running data and this is a fun way of posting our distances.”
To date the group has raised more than £4,000 for NHS charities, well over their initial target of £500.
Eve Moseby said that the amount had gone beyond their expectations, adding: “We did secretly hope to get £1,000 but that was definitely the maximum we thought we would achieve, being such a small society.
“We are over the moon with the response and can’t thank everyone who has donated enough for their support. It is really keeping the girls motivated and our legs a little bit less sore.”
In the past Sussex Netball has fundraised for Australian bushfire relief and co-ordinated an annual charity tournament bringing different teams together.
Although the 2020 tournament has had to be cancelled, the team is inspired to continue raising more money for causes in the year to come.
The two presidents said: “This has been a real team effort and we are so proud of all of the girls for getting so involved and committed.”
To donate, visit https://justgiving.com/fundraising/uniofsussexnetball.
