A team of South Wales officers raised money and awareness for a police mental health charity when they ran the Swansea Half Marathon.
The 16-strong team of detectives, scenes of crime, neighbourhood policing and child protection officers from Neath and Swansea came together to support the Thin Blue Line.
DC Annie Rees, of Neath CID, said the runners were inspired by the reality that mental health affects so many people inside service.
She said: “We all knew someone who had struggled with their mental health, and we all know someone who is currently struggling.
“I think all of us have experienced burnout in some way during the job.
“We wanted to do something together to support officers’ mental health.
“And we wanted to raise money and also raise awareness of the Thin Blue Line charity.
“We’re all really close and have strong working relationships. We support each other, help each other out and we did it as a collective team.”
Ironman
Annie said that some colleagues were experienced endurance athletes who had previously completed Ironman and triathlon events, others had never entered a race before – and she was one of the first-time runners.
She said: “I’d never run a half marathon before. In fact, I’d never taken part in a race in my life, so it was a real challenge for me.”
Annie documented her training journey on TikTok and has built a following of around 800 people.
She said: “I’d recently had a baby, and I wanted to show people that you don’t have to be a stereotypical runner to do a half marathon.
“You can do it even after having a baby, after recovering from major injuries, or experiencing a setback in your life.”
On race day, the reality of the 13-mile course, which took runners on a loop from Swansea to Mumbles and back, soon became apparent.
Personal best
Annie said: “At around mile four I looked across the seafront and could see Verdi’s Café in Mumbles.
“It looked tiny in the distance and I remember thinking that I’ve got to run all the way there, and then all the way back. That’s when it really hit me how far it was.”
Annie said there were some difficult moments.
She said: “I definitely struggled between miles nine and 10 and it was my colleague DC Nadine Marke who really pushed me through the last miles.
“She was incredibly supportive.”
All 16 team members crossed the finish line, with several achieving personal best times, raising more than £2,000 for the Thin Blue Line. Donations are still open on the team’s JustGiving page.
Annie said: “I actually loved it. I didn’t think I would, but I really enjoyed it and really got into it.”
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