{"id":507299,"date":"2026-05-28T18:10:17","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T18:10:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/507299\/"},"modified":"2026-05-28T18:10:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T18:10:17","slug":"ftd-brothers-complete-32-marathons-in-32-days-across-ireland-in-aid-of-dementia-research-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/507299\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018FTD brothers\u2019 complete 32 marathons in 32 days across Ireland in aid of dementia research \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two brothers have completed 32 marathons in 32 days across Ireland \u2013 one in each county \u2013 in aid of dementia<\/a> research.<\/p>\n

Jordan and Cian Adams crossed the finish line in Merrion Square, Dublin<\/a>, to a roaring crowd and chants of \u201cole ole ole\u201d.<\/p>\n

The brothers, who are from Redditch, England, with Irish connections from Longford<\/a> and Leitrim<\/a>, started the challenge in Co Antrim<\/a> on April 27th \u2013 a day after Jordan completed the London Marathon with a 25kg fridge on his back. This made it 33 marathons in 33 days for the 31-year-old.<\/p>\n

The brothers carry a rare gene for frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and have a 99.9 per cent chance that they will both develop the aggressive terminal illness in the 40s.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe brothers approach the finish line in Merrion Square. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw <\/p>\n

After crossing the finish line, Jordan told The Irish Times it was \u201cextremely overwhelming\u201d to see the crowd that gathered in support. <\/p>\n

\u201cToday I just wanted to enjoy it and feel a lot of pride, and ultimately celebrate what is the end of an incredible campaign and what feels like a piece of history,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t change the world. There\u2019s people in places not too far from here that can and we\u2019re going to go and make sure we have those conversations,\u201d Jordan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s money that moves the needle.\u201d<\/p>\n

His brother Cian (25) spoke of some challenges along the route. Jordan\u2019s birthday coincided with their Co Wicklow marathon, which included a 487m climb that caused a \u201cfew harsh words said\u201d. <\/p>\n

\"FromFrom left: Kennedy Frampton, Jordan Adams, Cian Adams, Jordan’s wife Agnes and Cian\u2019s Partner Helen. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw <\/p>\n

A highlight of the campaign he said was their Co Longford marathon, \u201cseeing family, seeing where mum would\u2019ve spent summers where our grandparents grew up\u201d.<\/p>\n

Their mother Geraldine died from FTD 52 in 2016 after being diagnosed six years prior. <\/p>\n

Cian said running has helped him and his brother cope with their grief.<\/p>\n

During a speech after the marathon, Jordan noted how difficult it was to watch his mother be \u201ccompletely stripped of everything that made her the amazing human being she was\u201d, adding how proud she would be of the accomplishment her family has made.<\/p>\n

Jordan and Cian\u2019s father, Glen Adams shared this pride in his boys but said \u201cif I was Irish, I\u2019d be very proud\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIreland has done itself very proud on the support of my family,\u201d Glen said.<\/p>\n

Glen described his role in the campaign as a \u201cpack mule\u201d, adding that \u201cif something needs carrying, I carry it\u201d. In the mornings before each marathon, Glen loaded up their truck with everything needed for the day ahead whether it be orange juice or shaving cream. <\/p>\n

\"TheThe brothers in Merrion Square on Thursday. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw <\/p>\n

Alzheimer Society of Ireland chief executive Andy Heffernan said the campaign exceeded \u201cway beyond our expectations\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey [the brothers] really have resonated with people of all ages in every country of Ireland,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The pair, who call themselves \u201cthe FTD brothers\u201d, have raised more than \u00a31.6 million (\u20ac1.8 million) for dementia research over the course of their journey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two brothers have completed 32 marathons in 32 days across Ireland \u2013 one in each county \u2013 in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":507300,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[75],"tags":[189597,17296,868,52,18,117,19,17,10743,12736,6072],"class_list":["post-507299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-alzheimer-society-of-ireland","tag-antrim","tag-dementia","tag-dublin","tag-eire","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-leitrim","tag-longford","tag-merrion-square"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116653551777884620","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/507299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=507299"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/507299\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/507300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=507299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=507299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=507299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}