Footballer Leonardo Bonucci on stepping out of post-career comfort zone to take on London Marathon challenge for Young Lives vs Cancer

ITALIAN footballer and UEFA Euro 2020 winner Leonardo Bonucci is swapping his football boots for running trainers to run the TCS London Marathon this April for Young Lives vs Cancer.  

Leonardo will be taking on the 26.2-mile challenge on Sunday 27 April alongside his running partner Pietro Deideri. The duo are hoping to raise vital awareness and funds for Young Lives vs Cancer, the leading UK charity for children and young people with cancer and their families.  

Leonardo said: “I run marathons because running makes me feel good and pushes me out of my comfort zone. We discovered Young Lives vs Cancer while looking for a charity to support for participating in the London Marathon, and given the experiences Pietro and I have shared, supporting this cause was the most natural choice. It truly felt like ours. 

“If someone had told me a year ago that I would run all these kilometres, I would have thought they were crazy. I, who have always hated running and believed it to be endlessly boring. But then a challenge arose: to find something that, after football, would push me to challenge myself, and thus the desire to run a marathon was born. Thanks also to Pietro for this. 

“I look back and feel proud and happy to have challenged myself, to have overcome my laziness, and to have stepped out of my comfort zone. 

“Today, one month remains until the London Marathon. I don’t know how or what I will experience when I cross the finish line, but I am certain I will be a better man and a better athlete. Because I have overcome myself, because perhaps I have taught something to someone, including my children, and because together with all of you we have achieved a great goal: to help Young Lives vs Cancer in supporting the families of children who are fighting cancer.” 

From the moment of diagnosis, Young Lives vs Cancer Specialist Social Workers provide day-to-day support for each child, young person and family.  

Families of children with cancer face £700 a month in extra costs during treatment. Young Lives vs Cancer support families with grants and help them get the benefits and other support to help with these costs. The charity’s accommodation centres also offer families a free place to stay close to the hospital to ease the financial burden of travel and to keep families together.  

Leonardo’s own son Matteo fell seriously ill after having surgery in 2016. 

Leonardo said: “I have a tattoo that symbolizes the bond between my son and me – a roaring lion, inspired by the moment Matteo roared like a lion just before the operating theatre doors closed, a memory that will forever link us to this challenge.” 

Pietro and Leonardo will be running alongside more than 300 runners running for the marathon as part of Team Young Lives – and running alongside another sporting name – Shane McGuigan. 

Pietro said: “Every day, 12 more children and young people in the UK are diagnosed with cancer, and I am proud to be able to support such an important charity. Leonardo and I are looking forward to crossing that finish line as part of Team Young Lives, and I’d love for as many people as possible to get behind our marathon challenge and help raise vital funds for Young Lives vs Cancer.” 

Young Lives vs Cancer relies on charitable donations to fund their vital work supporting children and young people facing cancer and their families across the UK. 

To support Leonardo and Pietro’s London Marathon efforts for Young Lives vs Cancer, visit: http://bit.ly/3Ejjwoi