Two inspirational daughters from Sudbury completed an ironman triathlon to raise money for charities that supported their mum through her “miracle recovery” from cancer, pneumonia and a stroke.
Despite never having tackled a triathlon before, Katie and Lucy McLernon took on the gruelling Lakesman Triathlon – a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile cycle ride and full marathon – in Cumbria on June 18.
The sisters have raised more than £6,000 for charity after their mum Carol McLernon, 53, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia – an aggressive blood cancer – and initially told she had only a week to live.
During her first round of chemotherapy, Carol contracted pneumonia and was in a induced coma on the intensive care ward at West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds for five weeks.
When she was brought out of her coma, it was discovered she had suffered a large stroke due to complications and doctors said they would not treat Carol with any more chemotherapy until she was walking again.
But Carol, who previously worked at Twinstead Riding Stables, near Sudbury, as a riding instructor, made remarkable progress with stroke rehabilitation at West Suffolk Hospital and after nearly a month was able to withstand more chemotherapy.
She was dubbed “the miracle patient” by nurses and is now in full remission from cancer and her speech has almost returned to normal.
Neither Katie, 28, a trained physiotherapist, and Lucy, 25, who works at Jonathan Lambert jewellers in Sudbury, even owned a bike prior to beginning training for the event.
Katie said: “We had never done a triathlon before, didn’t own a bike and neither of us could swim more than a length in a pool without stopping to catch our breath.
“It seemed like the perfect challenge to take on to raise large amounts of sponsorship, despite the fact we were terrified.
“We headed up to Keswick with a support team of 15 – including mum and dad – on what was the hottest day of the year.
“The support was incredible and it was worth it for the feeling of running over the finish line. It was the fact we knew we had raised more than £6,000 through family, friends and colleagues that kept us going the whole way round.”
Katie finished the event in a time of 14 hours and nine minutes, with Lucy completing the course in 15 hours and 55 minutes.
The sisters will donate the money raised to Bloodwise – a blood cancer charity – and the stroke ward at West Suffolk Hospital through its My WiSH charity.
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