'Tied to one another, my three brothers and I reached our ambitious target of £7,000.'

This year myself (the diabetic one) and my three brothers, Ben, Edward and Oliver, took part in the last ever Flora London Marathon.

Naturally we decided to run for Diabetes UK (I ran last year for Diabetes UK and raised over £2,000). We wanted to try and raise over £7,000.

To do so we decided that we needed a theme. In the pub one day a villager suggested that we do it tied to one another, from then on we were known as the Gilkes Running Team. Furthermore we reluctantly adhered to the strict Diabetes UK dress-code – pink tutus and accessories.

Training, training, training. We started training about six months prior to the event which invariably involved lots of arguments,competitiveness and more arguments. Then the day finally arrived.

Sunday 26 April 26 – race day. We donned our beautifully designed outfits and were ready to spend the day running. Prior to the event we had already been in various media circles, local radio, local news and the local paper. However it was on the day itself when we went nationwide.

The BBC (Sue Barker) told my story about my diagnosis and the work Diabetes UK do to help people like me. Also, halfway round the course, on Tower Bridge, we were stopped for a live interview, it was all very exciting.

The actual race was amazing, the crowd really supported us along the way, some people even recognised us from the TV, it was our 15 minutes or 5 hours 17 minutes and 56 seconds of fame!

There were so many highlights along the way, too many to list, but I can say that the best moment was the beautiful '385 yards to go' sign, by Buckingham Palace!

When we all crossed the line together it was an amazing feeling, both relief and pride in what we had achieved.

Just like last year I crossed the line and vowed never to put my body through the pain again, but just like last year I put my name in the ballot to run next years' race the very next day. I never learn!

With the help of extremely generous family, friends and total strangers we achieved our goal, we reached our ambitious target of £7,000.

I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 13. It was quite a rough diagnosis which went under the radar for a long time, I ended up slipping into a coma, with a BS of over 47. The early stages were quite tough, especially the injections!

As time went on it became more of a routine and effected me less and less. I ended up getting back to normality. I am an extremely sporty person, playing football, tennis, cricket, squash and enjoy the occasional jog every now and again.

There are two main reasons for running for Diabetes UK; Firstly the support I received during the early stages of my diagnosis was amazing, I don't think I would have coped as well without it and hopefully Diabetes UK will help find a cure. 

Secondly, I want to show people that Type1 diabetes does not have to restrict your lifestyle in any way.