Girl, 10, to cycle from London to Paris in four days for young cousin with epilepsy

A 10-year-old girl who dreams of being an Olympic athlete will cycle from London to Paris in four days for her cousin with epilepsy despite criticism over her personal trainer mum's intense training plan.

Mimi Ward, from Middle Barton, Oxfordshire, is taking on the 286-mile (460km) challenge for her eight-year-old cousin Dominic Williams who was diagnosed at 18-months-old with Dravet syndrome a rare and severe form of epilepsy which means his parents, Natalia, 45, and Tim, 46, from London, never know whether a seizure will occur each day.

Mimi will set off from Greenwich Park in London on October 2 after completing an intense five-month training plan created by her mum, 39-year-old personal trainer Tamara, which includes weightlifting, swimming, cycling, and pilates.

Mimi's challenge follows in the footsteps of her mother Tamara, who has run 5km every day in May for the past four years, raising over £400,000 for Dravet Syndrome UK and winning a regional Pride of Britain award.

On those May runs Mimi has joined her mother for 2km each day since the age of six and her mum said she "is a particularly good cross country runner".

Tamara has received criticism about letting her daughter take on the arduous physical challenge when mentioning it to strangers, with some stating she is too young to take on so much excursion, but she has complete confidence in her daughter's abilities.

She added Mimi's whole family are "so proud" of her, including her father Mike, 40, a communications director, and her siblings Max, 12, and Eliza, seven.

Mimi told PA Real Life: "Mama and papa have been fundraising for years now and have set up the challenge 5km, or 2km for kids, everyday in May for Dravet, which I have been running for every year now for four years, and I thought one day I would like to try and raise money for Dravet by myself."

"I also want to show every kid out there that anything is possible if you put your mind to it and work hard, you can achieve amazing things."

On her daughter's physical efforts, Tamara added: "It's hard listening to people with negative thoughts, but I know my child, and I know when people are capable of doing something."

Mimi's cousin Dominic, whose hardship inspired her to plan her Paris cycle, was diagnosed with Dravet syndrome at 18 months after suffering with convulsions.

"I remember we were all in France with my parents for Christmas, and my sister, Dominic's mum, got the phone call and she just collapsed," Tamara recalled.

"We all had to learn, literally overnight, what Dravet was."

"But even to this day, every child is different and you don't know how it's going to affect them on a daily basis."

"It's a case of her waking up and thinking: 'Is my child going to have a seizure today? Are they going to end up in hospital?'"

Dominic now faces significant challenges with his mobility, but has always shared a special bond with his cousin Mimi.

In 2020, Tamara began running 5km every day in May to raise awareness for Dravet Syndrome, and she has continued doing so for the past four years, raising over £400,000.

In 2021, Tamara's efforts were recognised with a regional Pride of Britain award, which she described as "very surreal".

Mimi has also joined in with the challenge, running 2km every day in May since age six.

Tamara said: "She's a particularly good cross country runner, she does loads of competitions at school, which she's in fact won for the last three years in a row."

"I have to say, she doesn't particularly like it when I say 'We're going on a run' but when she gets out there she's like a different person, and it just doesn't faze her, she just keeps going and going and going."

Now, Mimi is following in her mum's footsteps in May 2024, she had the idea to cycle from London to Paris, and asked her mum if she thought she could do it.

"At first, I didn't think she was serious," Tamara admitted.

"I said, 'Sure, I think you could,' not thinking anything of it."

But when they got home, Mimi "announced" to her dad that she was taking on the challenge to raise money for Dravet Syndrome UK.

"Dom has always supported us throughout May when we were running everyday," Mimi added.

"He would come to the park runs we organised and wait at the finishing line waving flags, or if we would be running on a treadmill he would sit by us telling us to run faster."

"I think he will be following us all the way to Paris and sending messages of encouragement throughout the four days."

"He would definitely be doing it with us if he was able to."

With Tamara being a personal trainer, she created a rigorous training plan for Mimi, blending cycling, strength training, mobility work, and endurance.

Mimi explained: "My training has been really hard... last weekend we did a 110km ride together, which was interesting as my mother fell off four times and managed to get us lost three times!"

Tamara has been criticised for letting her daughter take on the challenge, with some saying it's too intense for a child of Mimi's age.

Tamara said: "Actually I just went to the shop, and the person behind the counter was pretty shocked I was allowing a 10-year-old to do it."

"I just have to explain a lot of people don't understand that actually anyone can do anything they put their mind to."

"On the flip side, we've had amazing comments too."

Mimi's journey will begin on October 2, cycling 84 miles (135km) from Greenwich Park, London, to Dover before getting a ferry to Calais.

Day two will take them 78 miles (125km) from Calais to Abbeville, followed by 64 miles (103km) from Abbeville to Beauvais on day three.

On day four, they will cycle 60 miles (97km) from Beauvais to Paris finishing under the Eiffel Tower.

Joining them will be family friend and experienced cyclist Marcus Gamble-Shields, whose son Finn also has Dravet syndrome.

Mimi is eager to start the adventure, with her sights also set on an even bigger goal one day competing in the athletics at the Olympics.

"I am feeling super excited to get started as I have been training with my mother for a while, but at the same time I am really, really nervous," Mimi said.

Tamara added: "If anyone can do it, Mimi can, we're so proud of her."

"She's very dedicated and she just has drive it's not something I see in many people."

To donate to Mimi's fundraiser visit: www.justgiving.com/page/tamara-ward-1722199149653.

To follow along Mimi's journey, visit: www.instagram.com/mimis.london2paris.