Seven of the 10 runners who took part in this year’s London Marathon to raise funds for the Countess Charity visited the hospital to show off their medals and chat to staff about their experiences of the day.

Community and events fundraiser at the Countess Kathy Kenney wanted to thank the runners and the Chester Lions Club for offering their charity places to the Countess.

She said: “We want to say a huge thank you to the runners who have collectively raised over £20,000 for the Babygrow Appeal and the Ultrasound Breast Scanner Appeal.

“They ran in the hottest London Marathon on record and all completed the event safely and we feel very proud of them. “Not only did they receive sponsorship for the marathon, but they all put on events, such as a black tie ball, fashion shows, Easter Eggstravanzas, quiz nights and cake sales to increase their sponsorship totals – and managed to put the training in to complete such a gruelling event.”

Stephy King ran the 26.2 miles in 3 hours, 51 minutes and 54 seconds, James Harris in 4.20.56, Lee Pentland in 4.38.57, Rachael in 5.14.49, Chris and Claire Morris in 5.36.33, Sharon Marshall in 6.29.08, Clare Shaw in 6.30.02, Kim Hopkins in 6.37.53 and Rhiannon Gainey in 7.05.34. They have all now formed a close friendship group and are planning other challenges together.