Dementia ‘ripple effect’: reason one runner did the Sydney Marathon

With the temperature hitting 32 degrees, 17,000 people took to the city's streets on Sunday to run 42.195km in the Sydney Marathon, including one eager 20-year-old from Wollongong, who set her mind to raising money for Dementia Australia.

Participants ran over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, around Darling Harbour, down to Centennial Park and through the Royal Botanic Gardens, finally crossing the finish line at the Sydney Opera House.

Hailee Pickering raised over $1000 for research into the disease and trained for four months, running a total of 600 km, to ready herself for the race while juggling university and part-time work at her local cafe.

Throughout her training, Ms Pickering posted her progress on social media for her donors to keep up with, reporting her record for the most kilometres run in a month to be August, where she racked up 210 kms.

Ms Pickering's family is directly affected by dementia with her grandmother, Jean, diagnosed with the condition. This motivated her to dedicate her training to raising money for further research on the disease.

"My grandma was diagnosed years ago and it's hard to remember a time when it didn't affect her life," she told Aged Care Insite.

"People with family members with this disease will understand the emotional toll of having a loved one forget you, and watching a loved one be forgotten," she said.

"The ripple effects of this disease are humbling and I really hope there is a time it can be seen less."

Ms Pickering ran the marathon, cheered on by family who followed her around the track and flooded her with support.

This isn't the first time Ms Pickering has raised money for charity, previously working with the Starlight Foundation and the World's Greatest Shave.

The latter saw her shave her head in front of her peers at high school in 2019, raising $7,000 for leukaemia research, enough to fully fund three months of laboratory costs to help find a cure for the cancer.

Dementia Australia's 'Dementia Action Week', an advocacy campaign that is asking members of the community to practice inclusivity of dementia, is this week, followed by World Alzheimer's Day on Thursday 21.

It's estimated that 400,000 Australians are living with dementia, and Ms Pickering said this is reflected by its impacts in her circle.

"The most eye-opening part about raising money for dementia is realising the amount of people it effects," she said.

"I've spoken to many people about the run or about the cause I'm running for, and almost all have had a parent or grandparent with dementia.

"It's awful to see how universal the feeling is and it's so prevalent in today's world."

Ms Pickering told Aged Care Insite she is happy to combine her love for challenges and running with something close to her heart.

"I wanted to start marathon training because it felt like the final step in my running journey," she said.

"I've always loved a challenge, and I enjoy doing things I don't think I can achieve. Now that my training has finished I know it's not the final step in my running journey, and I can confirm it won't be my last marathon!"

Hailee is looking forward to entering the Port Stephens half-marathon in December, and hopes to run at least one fundraiser each year.

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