AN OXFORD runner competing in the New York Marathon for charity has already been a winner after picking up a big sponsorship package.

Becky Wilson beat 20,000 other runners to win a sponsorship lottery for her flights and new running kit ahead of the November marathon.

And, because of the publicity surrounding the competition on the marathon’s website, she has picked up £5,000 in donations for Oxford charity The Art Room.

The 32-year-old said: “I was so lucky this year, because un-beknown to me, 20,000 of the applicants were entered into a lottery.”

Mrs Wilson received new training equipment, shoes and sports gear that she would otherwise have had to pay for.

Continental Airlines is paying for her flights.

She said: “I’ve also been given free tickets to all the major attractions and get lunch with the elite marathon runners on the Sunday.

“They have really gone all out.”

The Art Room, based at Oxford School, uses art to help five- to 16-year-olds who are experiencing difficulties at school.

Teachers work with children to boost their self-esteem, self-confidence and independence.

Mrs Wilson said: “The charity is a fantastic cause because it’s not a huge multinational charity and I wanted to do something local to Oxford.

“It’s also close to my heart, as I’ve had family members who had real difficulties in school so I know what it can be like.”

She added: “I am aiming to raise £10,000 and have already got more than £5,000 from all the publicity.

“I want to be able to pay for a specialist arts therapist for a year, so am aiming to close the gap over the next month.”

It will be the second time she has run the marathon, finishing it in three hours 50 minutes in 2008.

She said: “It’s a fantastic event because it’s like a big street party. You run through Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island, so you get to see every demographic that New York has to offer.”

Bel Crewe, of The Art Room, said: “This is the first time someone has run a marathon for us and raised such an amount of money on their own. To us, Becky is a complete star. We are very grateful she chose us and that she believes in what the charity does.”

  • Sponsor Mrs Wilson at justgiving.com/rebecca-theartroom and follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/ mizzmarathon