Rebecca Manners’ 18th birthday celebrations won’t be like your average teenager’s party. Instead of enjoying a first legal glass of alcohol or a night out with friends, Rebecca will be tackling the 26.2 miles of the Virgin Money London Marathon.

But at least Rebecca – who is the youngest runner in this year’s Virgin Money London Marathon – won’t be celebrating on her own, as she will be joined on the Start Line by mum Jackie and dad Warren to make it a real family affair.

“It’s not your usual 18th birthday celebration, that’s true,” says Rebecca, who is from Manningtree near Colchester. “Some people think I’m crazy but I can’t wait for it.”

Rebecca, a student at Colchester Sixth Form College, was inspired to enter this year’s event by the exploits of her parents who are both keen marathon runners.

“I have been to watch my parents run the London Marathon for the past four years,” she says. “The atmosphere is always amazing and I thought it would be great to do it, too. Then when I saw this year’s event was on my birthday, I thought I’ve got to do it!”

Rebecca plans to run alongside mum Jackie for the entire course as she says dad Warren is “a bit too fast” for them.

“He’ll be a lot further up the road,” Rebecca says. “But me and mum plan to stick together. I’ve done all my training with her and she has been a big help to me because I’ve never done anything like this before.”

Rebecca was born at 06.35 on April 24 1998 so she will be 18 years and just under three-and-a-half hours at 10:00 when the mass field sets off. She is hoping to make her way to the Finish Line in one piece and will start to think about a more traditional birthday celebration afterwards.

“I’m sure we will do something as a family after and then I’ll probably do something else a couple of weeks later – once I’ve recovered!” Rebecca says.

With three members of the same family all running, all eyes will now be on the youngest of the Manners family, Rebecca’s youngest brother Ben, now aged 16.

“Who knows, he might want to do it one day with us all too,” Rebecca says.

Rebecca will be running for VICTA which provides support for blind and partially sighted children.

Visit Virgin Money Giving, the official fundraising website for the Virgin Money London Marathon, for more information on raising money for your chosen charity

Source: Virgin Money London Marathon