Kimberworth man runs Sheffield Half Marathon to support charity after heartbreaking miscarriages

Lee Knight completed the Sheffield Half Marathon in one hour and 50 minutes for Tommy’s, a pregnancy and baby loss charity.

The 34-year-old from Kimberworth, said the charity had supported him and his partner, Amy Buckley, after they suffered two miscarriages within the space of ten months — an ordeal which he said had left the pair with “broken hearts”.

Lee works, who works at the Willows School in Thurcroft, described the grief and pain which is associated with the loss of a child after trying so hard to become parents in the first place.

He said he had wanted to support a charity which supports research into miscarriages, stillbirths and premature births.

“I wanted to give back to them in some small way for how they support people like me and Amy,” he said.

“We didn’t have personal dealings with them because we handled things by ourselves but others might need that extra support.

“To handle the grief, I needed a challenge to break me out of quite possibly the worst ten months of my life.

“So I thought, why not give the Sheffield half marathon a go?

“I only had about four weeks to prepare and began running twice a day.

“I started running twice a day to get in shape and the advantage I held in some respect is that I’d done the marathon before when I was 27 in just over two hours.

“I felt compelled to do better and to raise as much money as possible for a charity which helped me when I was struggling to deal with my grief.

Lee said he had met Amy, “the woman of my dreams”, seven years ago and they had been together three years.

“We have wanted to make our little family complete with a child ever since,” he said.

“We struggled to conceive naturally so we needed help which involved lots of appointments at fertility clinics and medication which resulted in our first conception last May.

“It was like being on cloud nine. All our dreams had come true.

“But we were not prepared nor expected the heartbreak of a miscarriage.

“It took us many months but over time we began to get back on track and in October we got the surprise again of another baby.

“Around seven weeks passed in the pregnancy and we tried to remain as relaxed and calm as we could considering what had happened the first time.

“But then we got the awful shock again of another miscarriage.

“Both experiences have absolutely broken us emotionally. It has been truly heartbreaking.”

Lee described the emotional relief he felt when he finished the half marathon, explaining: “The first six miles are basically all uphill, which was gruelling.

“But what me and Amy have been through mentally in the last ten months gave me the motivation to complete the race.

“Any physical pain I felt during running was overruled by the heartache we had both suffered in the last ten months.

“It was really emotional during the race when people were on the sidelines shouting your name and Tommy’s which gave me that little bit more of a boost.

“If I can help make a difference to prevent future parents from going through the pain me and Amy did, I will feel I have accomplished something remarkable.

“It was dedicated to our two little stars in the sky.”

You can still support Lee’s fundraiser at https://tinyurl.com/Lee-Knight-for-Tommys