A MATERNITY support worker has fulfilled her grandfather’s words of wisdom while raising thousands of pounds for a 13-year-old girl to have a prosthetic leg, following an “emotional” London Marathon race on Sunday.

Nicola Field, 49, who works at Denbigh Infirmary, never thought she would attempt one of the world’s most famous marathons despite her grandfather, Emlyn Phillips, who completed it seven times, suggesting otherwise over the years.

She started running four years ago to improve her health and then, unexpectedly, received a rare ballot entry for this year’s race, soon finding herself in that very position when she crossed the starting line in Greenwich Park, south London.

But Nicola did not only have the backing of Emlyn, 87, who cheered her on from the sideline, as she was also running to raise money for Ruby Bryan, a Denbigh High School pupil whose leg was amputated last month to treat club feet, the painful and lifelong condition.

“I still can’t believe I have done it,” Nicola said. “I felt quite nervous during the week leading up to the race and on the day it was all a bit surreal.

“It took 49 minutes just to pass the starting line, because there were 40,000 runners, and then once you do it doesn't feel real.

“I went into it thinking ‘just finish the race’, and my grandad said that as long as I’ve trained and I enjoy it then I’ll cross the line.”

However, Nicola was not expecting to suffer extreme cramp at the 18-mile mark, when she had to stop and receive first aid. “At one point I feared I might not be able to carry on,” she said.

“But at the worst moments, like during training, I thought about Ruby and how strong she has been and it pulled me through.

“The crowds were amazing too, I’ve never seen anything like it. They were calling our names - which were on our vests - and cheering ‘Come on Wales!’ because we had Welsh dragons on our shorts.

“The last eight miles were tough, but I couldn’t let down Ruby and all the people in Denbigh who have donated.

”I would have crawled over the line if I had to!”

Nicola was welcomed with a hug and congratulations from her grandfather at the finish.

She has raised more than £4,500, four times her initial target, which will be given to Angela Bryan and daughter Ruby.

Mrs Bryan said: “We can’t thank Nicola enough, she has been unbelievable and so dedicated to training and fundraising, all on top of work.

“I can’t believe the difference her fundraiser is going to make to Ruby’s life. She can have a limb that enables her to be more active and it will look like a normal leg, which is what she really wants."

Ruby said that she was “buzzing” after Nicola completed the race. She returned to school for the first time since the operation on Tuesday, April 30 with crutches and a wheelchair. She will have her first cast fitting with the NHS on the Wednesday.

Mrs Bryan said that Nicola has given Ruby a huge boost. “Ruby will need to learn to walk again, but she’s been so positive and progressing faster than expected,” Mrs Bryan added.

“It’s nice to see there’s light at the end of the tunnel. We’re looking forward to going back to normal.”

To donate, visit the Running for Ruby fundraising page.