Staff member Declan Rainey will be wearing blue when he runs in the Brighton Marathon on 14 April.

Last summer the University’s Annual Fund and Legacies Manager, Declan Rainey, was looking to recruit runners for the 2013 Brighton Marathon, hoping to raise awareness and support for the Sussex Fund.

Many months on and after plenty of encouragement and a little coercing from his colleagues, Declan is about to run his first marathon. (He says it will also be his last.)

Declan is joined by student Stanley Carnall from the School of Law, Politics and Sociology and by seasoned runner and Sussex alumnus Michael Plummer, as they embark on what is probably the most uncomfortable sightseeing tour of Brighton.

The marathon takes place on Sunday (14 April) and the three runners will be wearing blue as modelled by Declan (pictured).

You can support the Sussex Fund – which helps students with financial difficulties, offers scholarships and supports other activities to enrich the student experience on campus -  by visiting www.justgiving.com/university-sussex and sponsoring one of the three runners.

Also taking part in the event are

• staff member Ellie Bennett from Undergraduate Admissions, running for Arthritis Research UK in her first ever marathon. You can sponsor Ellie at www.virginmoneygiving.com/EleanorBennett1
• Student Recruitment Officer Kevin Betts, known as “52 Marathon Man” because in 2011 he ran 52 sub-four-hour marathons for charity
• Professor of Energy Policy in SPRU, Jim Watson, who is running for the charity Renewable World (of which he is a trustee). Jim says on his fundraising page (http://justgiving.co.uk/Jim-Watson-Brighton), “I've been working on energy issues for the best part of 20 years, as an academic and policy adviser. Whilst this is very rewarding, I would like to make a more practical impact on some of the world's poorest communities … Renewable World is starting to make a real difference to people's lives through renewable energy projects in remote communities in Asia, Africa and Latin America.”