Great North Run: The primary school beside the finish line
Are you running the Great North Run this weekend? Or do you have any little ones who’ll be partaking in the junior Great North Run this coming Saturday? Well, I went to Mortimer Primary School to meet some of the school kids gearing up to run this weekend, and found out some of the charities being supported.
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00:00 I think we need to really celebrate that we do have the greatest half marathon in the
00:05 world in the North East and it goes through South Shields in the year I was school so
00:10 yeah it's a huge thing to be celebrating.
00:13 Located on Mortimer Road in South Shields, Mortimer Primary School sits just a 30 minute
00:18 walk from the finish line of the Great North Run.
00:21 Many of the teachers and parents of the school kids have taken part in the run for the past
00:24 few years saying it brings a sense of community to see all those at the race on the day.
00:30 I'm doing the Great North Run this year, it's my ninth time I believe and I'd like to say
00:36 I'm really looking forward to it.
00:38 I'm looking forward to the finish but I'm going to get around, it's going to be an amazing
00:42 atmosphere, I think the crowd's going to be phenomenal on Sunday as they always are.
00:46 I've got some of the teachers stationed along the route with some jelly babies and maybe
00:50 some Red Bull just to get me through.
00:52 I've looked around the school today and we've got so many red t-shirts in schools, we celebrate
00:57 local heroes and the Great North Run and I think we have to not only educate the children
01:03 but inspire them to be the next set of runners, the next set of superstars in our world and
01:09 really push it on.
01:10 I spoke to a few of the school children to find out what charities they plan on supporting
01:14 in taking part in the Junior Great North Run and why they're excited to be running at this
01:19 weekend.
01:20 I support Rugby Club because when there was the terrible wind, the roof blew off.
01:26 We've run the race for lots of years now and Kuba runs lots.
01:33 I do Harriers.
01:34 All my grandparents and aunties and stuff come and we go out for dinner.
01:39 I'm running for Macmillan which is a cancer sponsor because it helps my friends and my
01:46 family.
01:47 My auntie, her mum and dad have cancer at the moment and my mum used to have cancer
01:54 and that's when we started running for her.
01:56 Sadly her mum died and our dad who has cancer at the moment, we're running for him this
02:03 year.
02:04 I'm really excited for it, also a little bit nervous because I don't do a lot of running
02:09 myself.
02:10 I do more walking than running.
02:13 I'm really active though.
02:14 I also spoke to a few teachers in the school who have their own reasons for taking part
02:18 in the race this coming Sunday.
02:20 This year it's very special for me.
02:22 My friend Kate Bootland last year suddenly went deaf in one ear and it turned out that
02:28 she had an acoustic neuroma which is a brain tumour that grows in the ear canal and this
02:33 year she had it removed and I'm running for Newcastle Hospitals this year and two of my
02:39 friends are running for Banner which is the British Acoustic Neuroma Association, probably
02:44 a very little known charity.
02:47 We just want to give something back to the hospitals and to the charity for what they've
02:50 done for our friend.
02:51 The people that travel from all around the world to come to the North East, it should
02:56 be celebrated more.
02:58 Good luck everyone and I'll see you red and hot and sweaty at the finish line.
03:03 Good luck everyone.