James Greenwood was plunged into grief when he lost his sister Amy to asthma in November 2022. His world fell apart, and he needed a purpose to help him deal with the loss – that’s when he took up running.
In tragic circumstances, Amy Greenwood, a 22-year-old mother-of-two from Skelmersdale, Merseyside, died from a sudden asthma attack.
Amy was found unconscious by her fiancé, Keegan, after she collapsed at home. She wasn’t breathing and Keagan administered CPR and called paramedics who ventilated her before she was blue lighted to hospital.
But Amy never recovered, and the heart-breaking decision was made to turn off her life support machine the day after her asthma attack.
James ran his first London marathon in April last year and said it helped him to deal with his grief. He said: 'Getting up early every morning for a run gave me something to do. It helped give me time on my own just listening to music and zoning out. I didn’t want to go down a hole after Amy’s death and focusing on running has really helped me process everything.'
James said completing the marathon last year was a magical yet overwhelming experience 'After I finished, I got into the park at the end of the mall and sat and cried for a bit. It was bit overwhelming, but looking back I loved every minute of it. The atmosphere and just thinking of everything Amy had gone through spurred me on whenever I hit a wall,' he added.
As well as running in his sister's memory, James was also fundraising for Asthma + Lung UK, the UK's leading lung charity. 'I think running in memory of someone is always difficult as that person is always in your mind, but it also gives you great motivation to keep you going. As I was running last year, I just kept thinking I was running this for Amy and for all those affected by asthma.'
'When I hit the highs of running around the Cutty Sark and Tower Bridge I would think of Amy and when I was struggling and wanted to give up, I would think of Amy, and she would keep me going and give me just the push I needed.'
This year, he will be running the marathon again for the same charity, and hopes to knock his time down from 4 hours 53 minutes to 4 hours 30 minutes.
Keegan will also be running and he has completed some training runs alongside James. 'I have spoken to him about it and told him about all the highs and lows, like hitting walls at certain stages and the euphoria you feel at the end, but basically I just told him to get on with it!' James said.
James will be running in a very special pair of running shoes. A birthday gift from his parents, the laces feature a tag with Amy’s name on. 'I will be looking down whenever I am finding it tough and thinking of my lovely sister,' he said.
With work commitments and other things going on, James has found marathon training more difficult this year. He said: 'Some days can be tough, especially as I have asthma too, although not as bad as Amy had, but when I find the training hard, I just remember why I’m doing this.'
By running the UK’s biggest marathon, James hopes to help raise awareness of asthma, a condition that is often misunderstood and its deadliness overlooked. 'Many people I speak to never knew how much of an impact asthma can have on your life,' he said.
James was first inspired to sign up to the marathon last year by his mum, Joanne, who ran it two weeks before Amy died. 'This was a big achievement for my mum that Amy was there to see. We were all so proud of her,' he said.
'I told Amy I was planning on running the marathon the following year and had entered the ballot. Amy sadly died before the ballot results were announced, and I didn’t get a place. I then wanted to run the marathon for Asthma + Lung UK in memory of Amy like I told her I was going to.'
James and Amy, along with their sister, Zoe, were incredibly close and would do everything together. The loss of Amy has left the siblings devastated, but running has given James a purpose and a focus. 'I miss everything about her but hopefully she’ll be watching over me in April and cheering me on as I cross the finish line.'
You can donate to James' fundraising page here.
