Son of Nottingham attacks victim to run half marathon

The eldest son of a school caretaker killed during the Nottingham attacks has said he will run the Robin Hood Half Marathon in honour of his father and the other victims of the stabbings.

Ian Coates, 65, and students Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, both 19, were killed by Valdo Calocane, who also seriously injured Wayne Birkett, Sharon Miller and Marcin Gawronski in a spate of attacks on 13 June 2023 in the city.

Darren Coates, 45, is due to run the 13.1-mile (21km) race, which starts and ends at the Embankment on 27 September.

He is aiming to raise £50,000 for Huntingdon Academy in Nottingham, where his father was a site manager and caretaker for seven years.

Nottingham City Council has confirmed the authority will match the fundraising if it reaches £25,000.

Darren said he had started training for the running event a week after the inquiry into the Nottingham attacks ended.

"I've decided to come way out of my comfort zone and run a half marathon for my dad, Barnaby, Grace, everyone affected but mainly for the funds for the school that my dad worked at… the funds will go massively far for the kids.

"I've signed up to the gym for the first time in my life. It's going to be a big challenge, especially because I've got pins and plates in one of my ankles," he said.

The 45-year-old said he wanted to take on the half marathon in his father's memory and had already lost one-and-a-half stone (9kg) since starting training.

"I want to make him proud. It's all for my dad, his legacy was at the school," he said.

Darren said the physical activity was also helping his mental health.

"[During] the inquiry we were busy every day and then all of a sudden you're back to your normality.

"It's [the training] just kept me busy. It is keeping me focussed because I'm up and down. I've not received my help yet, I'm still in the process of getting psychiatrists," he said.

Ian was four months away from retirement at the Huntingdon Academy when he was killed by Calocane, who stole his van and used it to plough into Birkett, Miller and Gawronski.

The Nottingham Inquiry, which concluded in June, heard from 164 witnesses and laid bare a series of failings by authorities, including the NHS and police, in the years leading up to the attacks and in the aftermath.

Calocane is currently serving an indefinite hospital order after pleading guilty to three counts of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, and three counts of attempted murder in relation to survivors Wayne Birkett, Sharon Miller and Marcin Gawronski.

The bereaved families have maintained the attacks were avoidable and never been happy with Calocane's sentence.

The core participants of the inquiry will share closing statements at hearings in September, before the chair of the inquiry - retired senior judge Deborah Taylor KC - is expected to release a report with her recommendations next year.

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