As many are aware, our colleague and friend Madeleine is taking part in the Thames Marathon 2024 on Sunday 11th August and is raising funds for Thames Hospice. The Thames Marathon is a 9km (5.6 miles) endurance swim starting at Hambleden Lock and finishing in Marlow. We are delighted to support Madeleine and Thames Hospice and hope you can support this great cause also! The link to the Just giving Page will be at the end of this article. We hope you enjoy this insight as to how Madeleine is currently getting on.

Madeleine has been extremely committed to training for the Thames Marathon, and we are proud to give you a sneak peek on her training and swimming spots, which include:

– A late-night Open Water swim in a well-known spot on her route home, where she was joined by an otter splashing her during her front crawl!

– Swimming around Old Harry Rocks

– Swimming 4km in Jubilee River

– Early morning swims in her local lake, and a well-deserved coffee at the Thames Hospice café afterwards

A bit about Madeleine

Madeleine is a real asset to our firm. Her dedication to her work and everything she does has been incredibly valuable and inspiring to all colleagues. She is a great team player, embracing all she does.

Outside of work, Madeleine enjoys exploring the countryside on foot. That said, she has always had a passion for swimming, and you will most likely find her open water swimming all year round, mainly in the Thames, even if it means pushing the ice aside to get in (no wetsuit required of course!).

A fun fact about Madeleine is that she is a ‘Loyal Royal’ having held a season ticket at Reading FC for nearly 20 years and enjoys watching her nephew play cricket for Peppard Stoke Row CC.

Madeleine has a passion for adventure too. In her younger days she backpacked for nearly two years visiting places like South America, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Southern Africa. She still has so many places she would like to discover, Costa Rica and Madagascar being next on the bucket list! But for now, swimming between Henley and Marlow is her next adventure!

Thames Hospice

Mercers’ Charity Partner for 2024 is Thames Hospice. So, let’s take a minute to talk about why Madeleine is raising money for them and what they do.

Thames Hospice is a Charity close to the hearts of the team at Mercers, but also to our families, friends and clients. We take great pride in supporting Thames Hospice and look forward to collaborating throughout 2024.

Thames Hospice provide dignity and comfort to those facing a terminal illness, including support through palliative and end-of-life care services. Their services are free of charge to all those in our community who need vital hospice care, and this is only made possible through the charitable support and generosity of the local community.

Back to the swimming!

We asked Madeleine:

“Where is your favourite swimming spot for training?” and she told us the following:

‘Somewhere quiet where the only company is nature itself. I could tell you where that is but then I would have to kill you!’

Do take a look at some of our photos and updates via the Just Giving page.

If you are able to donate, the link to Madeleine’s Just Giving page is below. No donation is too small!

Mercers Solicitors is fundraising for Thames Hospice (justgiving.com)