LIVE FOR TODAY

My pal Kip has done 52 marathons in 52 weeks for charity... he is a true legend and inspiration

Those of you who read my column regularly will know my way of dealing with living with incurable prostate cancer is to run – or shuffle – races or organised events. And the longer the better.

Along the way I have met some fantastic people – like the amazing Chris “Kip” Patterson. I met Chris when we shared a tent while running the Marathon des Sables in the Sahara in 2016.

We became good mates in the hardship of the desert. Like many on that trip, he has gone on to do something incredible.

Over the last 12 months he set himself a challenge to run 52 organised race marathons in 52 weeks. Last week was his final one – in Deal, Kent – and as a surprise I joined him to mark the occasion.

So, despite having multiple over-use injuries, we completed his final marathon together.

Kip is a selfless, quiet guy and all year has been raising funds and awareness for his favourite charity Hope for Children (see hopefor-children.org).

What makes his feat all the more amazing is that he has effectively been unsupported and paid for everything himself, used his own leave and held down a full-time job while running in places as far afield as China, Malta and Prague, to name a few.

On top of that he has run sub four-hour marathons on occasions and limped round in six when carrying inevitable injuries.

Kip is, in my eyes, a true legend and if you want to support his efforts please visit h4c.everyday hero.com/uk/52-marathons-in-52-weeks

I hope Kip and I can inspire you to push yourself to make a difference for others – in whatever way you can.

Until next week