PLUCKY pupils pulled on their dancing shoes to help inspire North-East women to enter this year’s Race for Life.

Students from Tiffany School of Dance, in Darlington, joined fundraisers from Cancer Research UK to perform the Cancer Slam – a feisty dance routine which will be used in the warm up at all their Race for Life events this summer.

The dancers hoped their moves would inspire shoppers to sign up for one of the 5km events, which raise millions of pounds every year to fund life-saving research.

Jayne Glasgow, Cancer Research UK events manager, said: “The dancers have been fantastic, and the response from ladies in Darlington has been brilliant.

“We have had people wanting to sign up for the race who haven’t done it before, to those wanting to volunteer on the day, which we really appreciate as we couldn’t run the event without them.

“We always have a great response from Darlington. Last year 2,664 people took part and raised £134,000.

“This year, we want to beat that.”

The Darlington event takes place in South Park on June 8 and women can walk, jog or run the 5km route.

Races will also be held in Middlesbrough on June 20 and 21, Hartlepool on July 6, followed by Durham on July 27.

There will also be 10k races in Newcastle on July 20, and a 5km obstacle course, with mud, called Pretty Muddy, at Newcastle Racecourse on July 19 and Herrington Park, Sunderland, on May 24.

To enter Race for Life in the North-East, and learn how to do the Cancer Slam, visit raceforlife.org or call 0845-6006050.