Officer fundraising for mental health charity runs marathon in memory of her brother

20 October 2021

A West Midlands Police officer, determined to raise awareness of mental health, has told how she ran this year’s Virgin Money London Marathon in memory of her brother, world judo champion Craig Fallon, who took his own life following his battle with depression.

PC Tina Fallon-Hancock completed the 26-mile route earlier this month, raising more than £4,400 for mental health charity Mind.

Her fundraising efforts came after her brother, Craig (36), who had competed in the Olympics, took his own life in 2019 after silently battling with his mental health.

“The only way I could really rationalise what had happened was by helping others and raising awareness,” said mother-of-two Tina, “Both Craig and I come from a sporting background and when the British Olympic Association offered me a celebrity place to run the marathon on behalf of my brother I knew I needed to do it.

“I don’t ever want to not talk about Craig but I still get choked up. I’m still coming to terms with what happened. Although he couldn’t help himself, my brother would’ve wanted me to help others.

“I want to show people that this is real. This is my life, and it could happen to you. My brother had a son, he had a successful career, he was a phenomenal fighter – but he was fighting a lot of demons.

“Nothing will bring my brother back. The thing is, if you don’t tell people and explain your story, people don’t think it’s real.

“And every pound we raise is doing something to help others.”

Tina, who ran with her brother’s name on her top, said it was an emotional day. She added: “I’m not a marathon runner but I trained as much as I could. I tried to fit my training in around my kids and listened to a lot of podcasts about resilience, which definitely helped.”

She was due to take part in the event last year but due to the coronavirus pandemic, the race was cancelled, which led to Tina and her mother walking the route and completing it ‘virtually’.

“The support we received was amazing,” said Tina, who took part in a live link to Gabby Logan as part of the day’s TV coverage.

“So many people shared our story, it really bought people together. We felt like we were doing something to help. Mum is 63 and although she is fit, she couldn’t have run the 26 miles. She wanted to contribute and by walking with me, she knew she’d done something.”

Speaking about Craig, Tina said she knew he was “really down” but speaking about it was like the elephant in the room.

“We could never have said my brother had depression,” she added.

“I told him there was help out there but there was no chance he was speaking out. The stigma surrounding mental health is massive, I think Craig was embarrassed and disappointed in himself. He kept everything to himself.

“I remember the day we heard he was missing, I felt so peaceful – I now realise it was because he had gone. I knew he’d found his happy place.”

Tina admits that the traits she saw in Craig are common within officers and staff in the Force too.

“I don’t think the police have got it right yet,” she said, “It’s so sad that we promote wellbeing so much but we don’t always get the support we need. I think the police need to do more, especially when they expect so much of people.

“There’s so much trauma that people see. Our minds see a lot of things, it’s important to treat it well. Ultimately, if you had a broken leg people would deal with it – sometimes the mind needs help too.”

Following Craig’s death, Tina is now urging others to speak out.

She said: “None of us know what is going on in other people’s lives, we need to stop judging one another. The mind is more fragile than it has ever been.

“I’ve been through this a thousand times but if he was here I question what I would’ve done differently. The answer is, I would’ve raised it with others, even if he had said he didn’t need the help – I would’ve pushed for it. Even if that meant he never spoke to me again because I’d rather him be here, not speaking to me, than not be here at all.”