Jordan and Cian Adams ran the London Marathon with fridges on their backs - here's the heartbreaking reason why
A pair of British brothers have gone viral for running the London Marathon while carrying a 25kg fridge on their back.
Jordan and Cian Adams ran 26.2 miles (42km) through the capital city on Sunday (26 Apr), in a bid to raise money for Alzheimer's Research UK.
The charity focuses specifically on finding a cure for the progressive neurodegenerative disorder and improving how we diagnose, prevent, and treat the diseases that cause dementia.
Their mission had been spurred by the heartbreaking news that both Jordan and Cian have an increased risk of being diagnosed with dementia at some point in their 40s.
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They carry a gene passed down by their mother, Geraldine, which makes patients 99 per cent more likely to receive an early diagnosis.
Geraldine was diagnosed at 47, when Jordan was 15 and Cian, nine. She died in 2016, aged just 52.
The Redditch duo are now known as the FTD Brothers, based on the non-profit FTD Brothers Foundation, which they set up to fund research on frontotemporal dementia - a variation that shrinks the brain's frontal and temporal lobes.
The incurable condition often affects people aged 45–64, and primarily causes early, significant changes in personality, behaviour and language.
Knowing what the future holds, the brothers set up a GoFundMe page in the weeks before setting off, hoping to raise £1m in Geraldine's honour.
Despite the page having accumulated a staggering £590,000, Jordan and Cian's quest is far from over.
Following their viral success in London, the pair have already kicked off their next assignment - completing 32 consecutive marathons across Ireland.
"We're in Ireland to honour the 12 relatives we lost [to frontotemporal dementia or FTD], who were all Irish," Jordan, 30, told listeners of BBC Radio 5Live from the start line of their first race, in Antrim.
"We're going to run 32 consecutive marathons in 32 days, but I wanted to use the London Marathon as a launch pad and get as many eyes and ears across our story. What better way to do that when, in November of last year, I came up with the idea to put a household appliance on my back and run the London Marathon."
He continued: "I stand here as a soon-to-be 31-year-old, with Kian set to turn 26 this year, and we know that ultimately we're living against the clock."
"We don't take any day for granted, our perspective on life shifted hugely in our early 20s when we had to have conversations about mortality. You have to think about putting things in place in your 20s that not a lot of people have to think about."
Addressing their peculiar decision to carry a fridge on their backs during the run, Jordan also spoke with the mental health charity MIND, claiming he wanted to pay homage to the people who helped him and Cian 'carry the weight' of their diagnoses.
"I spiralled. Depression. Intrusive thoughts. Feeling like my future had already been written," he reflected. "But what saved me was people.
"Friends. Family. Support. People who helped me carry the weight when it felt unbearable. And that’s what this is about.
"This marathon with a fridge on my back isn’t just a challenge. It’s a symbol. Because that’s what it feels like sometimes - like you’re carrying something heavy that no one else can see. I’m doing this to make dementia visible.
"But more than that… to show you that whatever you’re carrying, you don’t have to carry it alone."
Rhianna Benson