Prestigious award for our Trust running club leader
Jo Gennari, General Manager at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, has won the prestigious “Spirit of The London Marathon Award” for setting up and managing the organisation’s running club (#TeamLGT) in her spare time. Previous award winners include Paula Radcliffe and Tanni Grey-Thompson.
The award organisers praised Jo’s “extraordinary work at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust in inspiring so many people to run”. They added: “This was showcased again in the virtual Virgin Money London Marathon this year, truly epitomising the Spirit of the London Marathon.”
Jo set up the running club in 2016 and recently arranged for a team of over 30 local NHS heroes to take part in the 2020 virtual London marathon. The amazing effort featured prominently in the BBC’s coverage of the event. Since forming the team have raised over £7,500 for Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust’s charity.
Jo said: “I’m absolutely gobsmacked (to win). It doesn’t happen to people like me. I’m thrilled. In 2017 we started a well-being project at the Trust to coach beginner runners and we’ve been working to help them through Couch to 5k and developed that into the running club as it is now.” Jo wants to make running inclusive for all. She was one of the pacers in the 2019 Virgin Money London Marathon and is part of the London Marathon Events working group looking to improve the experience of the Back of the Pack runners.
She said: “It’s about doing activity; not being an athlete. I don’t look like an athlete. I’m a woman in my late 40s, I’m average build, I’ve got a busy job and a teenage son. Health and fitness have helped us through the challenges of Covid this year (at the Trust). We’re a bit evangelical about how being more active can help you cope.” And speaking about the Award, she said: “It represents the whole team, not just me. I couldn’t have done it if people weren’t willing to be encouraged.”
Dr Elizabeth Aitken, Medical Director for Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust (and a keen runner herself), said: “Jo makes a huge contribution towards staff wellbeing while also supporting our Trust charity. It has been a year like no other, and it’s been so important for staff to take the time to unwind and to look after their own physical and mental health. Jo has supported many people to do this through our running club, and she’s already getting volunteers for next year’s “Big Half” and London Marathon to raise more money for our charity.”
Fay Blackwood, Associate Director Organisational Development, Equality and Inclusion, who heads our Staff Wellbeing work-stream, said; “Jo’s enthusiasm, right from our very first staff wellbeing meeting back in 2016, has been incredible. She dedicates huge amounts of energy to the team and is passionate about supporting both our beginners and the more experienced runners. Since forming TeamLGT have raised a lot of money for our Trust charitable fund and they continue to set a great example.”
The award was created after the 2017 Virgin Money London Marathon when millions of people around the world were moved by the sight of Swansea Harrier Matthew Rees stopping his own race to help David Wyeth down The Mall to the Finish Line. There are three winners of the award this year. Jo stands alongside Aaron Plummer who became the face of Mencap’s campaign, showing the world that having a learning disability is no barrier to achieving your dreams and Barbara Ralph Ralph who has run a total of 30 London Marathon’s since her first in 1984 and has run the most London Marathons by a woman since the event began in 1981.
This year, the impacts of pandemic meant that the Virgin Money London Marathon was staged as an elite-only race in a biosecure environment in St James’s Park and a virtual event for runners all around the world. Runners had from 00:00 to 23:59:59 BST on Sunday 4 October to complete 26.2 miles in their own unique way. More than 38,000 people completed the distance in the first-ever virtual Virgin Money London Marathon.
You can follow Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust’s running club on Twitter through @TeamLGT and on instagram @nhsteamlgt #TeamLGT
Jo, pictured centre with some of our wonderful #TeamLGT colleagues who took park in this years Virtual London Marathon >
