Emer Casey Foundation volunteers with Sonia O’Sullivan (centre).

Olympian Sonia O’Sullivan will help raise awareness of ovarian cancer this month at the annual Emer Casey Fun Run in Melbourne.

This year participants can take part in 5km or 10km runs; the event will be at Monash University’s Clayton campus on May 26.

The run is held in honour of the young Corkwoman who passed away in 2006 just weeks after she was diagnosed with ovarian/uterine cancer. Emer Casey was from Youghal; she died four days after her 28th birthday.

The Emer Casey Foundation supports the research into ovarian cancer being carried out in Australia by the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.

On the day there will be a Poc Fada competition and prizes for the race winners – along with the chance to run alongside O’Sullivan.

Further details on the run are available at run4ec.com.au.

The former world champion lives in Melbourne with her husband Nic Bideau and their two daughters Ciara, 13, and Sophie, 11. The Cobh native recently served as the chef de mission for Team Ireland at the London Olympics.

Last month, University College Cork  named its new international standard 400m track after the champion athlete.  The original track at the Mardyke sports grounds was destroyed by  flooding of the Lee in 2009 and the university invested €650,000 in the new facility.

Irish chef de mission Sonia O'Sullivan signs the Olympic truce under the gaze of Irish Olympic chief Pat Hickey ahead of the opening ceremony of the London games.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said Ireland is proud of its Olympians as he wished them the best for London 2012.

Mr Kenny will meet some Team Ireland members at their training base in Twickenham, south-west London, ahead of the opening ceremony.

“The Olympic Games are the pinnacle of sporting achievement for a huge number of sportsmen and women,” he said.

“I want to wish all of the athletes representing Ireland the very best over the duration of the Games.

“They have trained hard and made enormous sacrifices over many years to reach this point, and we are proud of their efforts in both qualifying and representing Ireland at this great spectacle. “We will follow their progress on the world stage with excitement, respect and admiration.

“Having the Games so close to us in London makes it all the more special, given the historical and cultural ties between our two countries.”

The Taoiseach has also been invited to a special event for foreign leaders in Buckingham Palace hosted by the Queen. He will also attend the opening ceremony.

Team Ireland has been based at St Mary’s College, Twickenham, for several days as the build-up to the Games intensifies.

Among the first competitors in action are Tour de France cyclists Nicholas Roche and Dan Martin in Saturday’s road race.

Sonia O'Sullivan on the starting line at the 2011 Emer Casey Fun Run.

Sonia O’Sullivan is supporting the battle against ovarian cancer again this year by participating in an upcoming run to raise funds for the cause.

O’Sullivan, 42, will take part in the Emer Casey Fun Run in Melbourne on May 27, prior to returning home to Ireland in time for the Olympics.

The mum-of-two is due to carry the Olympic torch in Dublin on June 6, before she flies to London to begin her duties as Chef de Mission at this year’s games.

O’Sullivan says that taking part in the Fun Run will be a great way to bid goodbye to her adopted home of Australia before she returns to her home country for several months.

The Cork born athlete became an Australian citizen in 2006 and now divides her time between Melbourne and Ireland. The Emer Casey Fun Run commemorates a 28-year-old Youghal solicitor who died of ovarian cancer in 2006 and raises funds to support Melbourne’s Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.

A former 5,000m World Champion and Olympic silver medalist, O’Sullivan’s involvement with The Emer Casey Foundation began in Ireland when she ran in the Youghal fun run some years ago.

“It’s my last run before I head over for the Olympics so I’m looking forward to it,” O’Sullivan told the Irish Echo.

“My younger daughter Sophie and I will be heading to Ireland the following week.

“These days I just run to keep fit so I’m kind of whatever about the training.

“I’ve been doing different things instead. I’ve been doing some swimming and cycling so that keeps me fit anaerobically. I can’t run so fast anymore.

“Things like the charity events. It gives me something to look forward to and you have a bit of a goal and a target as well.

“I just use that as a way for me to stay fit and also to help out a good cause.

“The first one I did was in Youghal in County Cork and then the past three years I’ve done the one in Melbourne,” she added.

The Olympic medalist urges those who may have recently moved to Melbourne from Ireland to come along and join in the festivities on the day.

“I’d like to encourage any Irish people in Melbourne to come and run with us,” she explained.

“We’ve been out to Gaelic Park in Melbourne and we’ve spoken to a few of them there so we’re hoping they’re going to come along.

“There’s always a bit of good Irish fun and we like to share that with the Aussies,” she laughed.

This is the fifth year of the annual Emer Casey Fun Run, which will take place at Clayton Campus, Monash University.

Registration begins at 8.30am with a 10.00am start for 10km and 10.15am start for 5km .

Last year over $25,000 was raised to support the Peter Mac Foundation VBCRC Cancer Genetics Program and the Kathleen Cunningham Foundation Consortium both of which focus on research into Familial Breast and Ovarian Cancer.

For more information about the Emer Casey Fun Run and to register, visit http://www.emercaseyrunmelbourne.com/.

Jasmine Angus, Sonia O'Sullivan, Maria Twomey and Tarryn Bennett pictured at last year's run.

Sonia O’Sullivan is set to support the battle against ovarian cancer again this year by participating in a Melbourne fundraising run.

The Emer Casey Fun Run commemorates a 28-year-old Youghal solicitor who died of ovarian cancer in 2006 and raises funds to support Melbourne’s Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.

The former 5,000m World Champion and Olympic silver medalist involvement with the Emer Casey Foundation began in Ireland when she ran in the Youghal fun run some years ago.

“I just thought it was amazing,” O’Sullivan told the Irish Echo.

“It was quite a small event, a family-run event in honour of the Casey’s daughter. It just had a very positive energy about the whole charity and the event.”

The Olympic medalist didn’t hesitate to say yes when approached to run in the Melbourne event last year.

In 2010, over 160 people participated and raised over $23,000 to support research into familial breast and ovarian cancer.

This year’s event has already raised $1,617. It will take place at Monash University’s Clayton Campus on Sunday, May 22.

O’Sullivan’s participation will double as a final practice before she competes in the Cork City Marathon on June 6.

The 41-year-old mother-of- two divides her time between Melbourne and Ireland since becoming an Australian citizen in 2006.

“If anything, it’s different in that when I’m in Australia [life is] centered a lot on family life, kids and school and things like that,” said O’Sullivan, mother to Ciara, 11, and Sophie, 9.

“Because I’m only [in Ireland] for a certain amount of time I tend to run around and do 101 things and be extra busy. Then when you come back here I suppose you just have to adapt and get into a different routine.

“I’m lucky it’s Easter holidays at the moment, it gives me a chance to take my time and just relax for a few weeks.”

Olympic Preparations

O’Sullivan faces a busy 12 months leading Ireland’s athletes as chef de mission for the 2012 London Olympics.

The Irish backroom team is currently being put in place and the country’s athletes are being put through their paces in qualification.

Supporting athletes outside of her own discipline has been an enjoyable learning experience, said O’Sullivan.

“When I was a top athlete and part of the team, you were focused on what you were doing and you didn’t really pay much attention to the other athletes doing different sports in the Olympic Team.

“Now, I’m learning a lot more about the people who ran the team when I was in it and the different sports.

“There are so many good athletes in Ireland. You don’t realise it when you’re so focused on one sport,” she said.

For more information about the Emer Casey Fun Run and to register, visit http://www.emercaseyrunmelbourne.com/

Maria Twomey, Kathleen O’Sullivan, Setanta Ó hAilpín, Theresa O’Sullivan, Christine O’Sullivan and Susan O’Leary at last year's Emer Casey Memorial Run in Melbourne. This year's event takes place on May 23.

Sonia O’Sullivan, the former World 5,000m champion from Cobh in Co Cork, will lead the field in a charity fun run in Melbourne on May 23, organisers have revealed.

The Emer Casey Memorial Run commemorates the life of a young Irishwoman whose life was cut tragically short through cancer, and the run raises much-needed funds for cancer research.

Emer, from Youghal, died on June 10, 2006 from ovarian/uterine cancer. She had turned 28 four days earlier.

The run, which is being held for the second time, is at Monash University in the Melbourne suburb of Clayton.

This year’s race will be a bigger event than last year’s, not least because it offers the opportunity to run alongside one of Ireland’s greatest ever athletes over the 5km or 10km course, depending on your preference.

Registration on the day begins at 8.30am with both the 5km and 10km races starting at 10.15.

Sonya previously ran, and won, in the Emer Casey Memorial Run in Youghal last year.

Emer’s friend Jennifer Ring, who organised the Melbourne run, is looking forward to this year’s event.

“We’re overwhelmed with the support we’ve had in Melbourne. The continued backing of the event by Setanta Ó hAilpín and the enthusiastic participation this year of Sonia O’Sullivan is fantastic.

“It’s also great to see this growing as an Irish / Australian event with Monash University hosting the run this year,” she said.

The organisers of the run say they hope to have up to 400 participants this year and raise around $10,000 for cancer research.

Register for the run online here.