A TORFAEN councillor will be taking part in the Cardiff Half Marathon next month in aid of Stroke Association Cymru.

Fiona Cross, a Plaid Cymru councillor for Coed Eva ward in Cwmbran, will be putting her best foot forward to raisemoneyfor the charity which does a lot of work in her local community hall.

She said: “I only started running in late June. I couldn’t run a mile before but a few friends encouraged me to give it a go as I wanted to get fit and lose weight.

“I joined Pontypool and District Runners in July, a new running group that just keeps on growing as the sport seems to be gaining in popularity. Soon after I did my first 10k race and didn’t come last.

Being a former smoker this was a big deal to me.”

She added: “I decided to run for the Stroke Association because they do an amazing job inmylocal community hall, The White Hut.

“It’s the only Stroke Association group supporting people in Gwent.

“They help people regain various skills to live a full and independent life.

“My granddad suffered from a stroke in his early 40s. I’m sure he would have appreciated this kind of support if it was available then.

“I’m training almost every day and I can run eight miles so far.

“The only problem I have is fitting the training around work and family.

“So I try and run to work andmy children have become my official coaches as they ride their bikes around Cwmbran Boating Lake while I run.”

The Cardiff Half Marathon will take place on October 14.

You can support Cllr Cross by pledging at justgiving.com/Fiona- CrossX