Domico Watson To Run For ‘Team Fight for Sight’
[Written by Stephen Wright]
Domico Watson says running in the memory of his late grandfather will be all the extra motivation he needs when he races in the London Marathon in April.
Watson knew raising funds for charity would help secure his spot on the famous start line and believes he found the perfect cause in Fight for Sight – a UK charity dedicated to funding pioneering sight loss research.
The 30-year-old, whose parents Mike Watson and Donna Raynor, were two of the island’s top middle-distance runners, watched glaucoma – a group of eye diseases that damage the optic nerve and cause vision loss – steal the sight of his grandfather, Edward “Sonny” Watson.
By the time Watson takes to the start line in Blackheath, at the southern end of Greenwich Park on April 23, he hopes to have raised at least £2,000 for his chosen charity.
“For years, I’ve wanted to run the London Marathon, but I knew I had to raise money for a charity close to my heart,” Watson told Bernews. “I needed to feel a connection.
“My grandfather, who died in 2021, had glaucoma and lost most of his vision. He had a rough time dealing with it, and it was hard to see him like that.
“It felt like overnight we had to change how we did things around him. He was less independent, and we had to adjust his home’s layout and take him out on guided walks. He was a great guy and remained in good spirits.
“I found Fight for Sight, and they are an awesome international charity. Most of the charities people are running for are UK based, but they have an international sector and help lead research in vision loss and conditions like glaucoma.”
Perhaps because of the prowess of his parents on the track, with his father representing Bermuda at the Olympic Games in Seoul in 1988 and his mother winning a silver medal at the Central American and Caribbean Championships in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1989, Watson shied away from the sport as a child.
“I honestly had no interest in running growing up,” Watson said. “I played tennis for most of my younger years. I even avoided running as part of my tennis training. I always enjoyed watching track, but no one could get me to run.”
Eight years ago, Watson, as a student at the Savannah College of Art and Design, decided he wanted to get fit and healthy and started park running with friends.
He quickly discovered he had a natural talent and, in 2015, ran his first Bermuda Half Marathon Derby, with his father, a four-times winner, coming out of retirement for his final outing, the pair finishing together in 52nd and 53rd and clocking the same time of 1hr 35min 19 sec.
“I went from no running to a lot of running in two years,” said Watson, who returned to Bermuda in 2020 after living in the UK.
“Neither of my parents ran marathons,” he said. “They would have loved to have seen me get into running when I was younger. They started the Flyers Track Club and always enjoyed motivating kids and people to get into running.
“They are excited about it, though, and travel with me to my races. My dad calls me on the phone, saying, ‘What are you doing with your nutrition? How are you preparing? What’s your plan for the race?’ The excitement is there for both of them as much as it is for me.”
Watson will compete in his fourth marathon in London, having run the New York Marathon in 2018, the Chicago Marathon in 2019 and the Toronto Marathon in October last year, where he ran a personal best of 2:49 to qualify for the Boston Marathon this year.
“I took to marathons because I liked the mileage,” he added. “Perhaps getting into running at a later age, I found marathons a bit more natural rather than speed events.
“I enjoy testing myself and want to see how far I can push it. You want to run a PB in every race. I’d love to break my PB in London.”
To help Watson raise money for Fight for Sight, click here.
