MATT O’Reilly has challenged himself to complete five marathons in five days all without leaving the comfort of his Grotton home.
In doing so, Matt aims to raise money for locals ‘going the extra mile’ to help vulnerable members of the community during the coronavirus crisis.
A reluctant cyclist, Matt has already saddled up on his exercise bike to complete the first 52 miles of his 130 miles global journey.
After successfully completing the ‘New York and Barcelona marathons’ Matt will pedal the same distance for the rest of the week, replicating long-distance runs in Italy, France and Germany.
He completed his own version of the London Marathon as part of his training programme.
“This is my tribute each day to countries most affected by coronavirus,” he told the Independent.
“I called it going the extra mile challenge because the money raised is for local people going out of their way, spending their own money in their own time doing something for us all.
“I also want people to suggest where this money can be best spent.
My initial target is £1,000.
“But I want to raise as much money as possible and to make it available as quickly as possible.
“If this takes off, I would love to turn it into 10 marathons in 10 days and keep it going.
“I love all sports but cycling isn’t top of the list. So, it is a psychological challenge for me sitting on a bike for around 90 minutes non-stop. I am definitely out of my comfort zone.
“But this is not about me or setting times. This is about getting as much money in the pot, finding a worthwhile cause locally and getting money to them as quickly as we can.
“Charities start from little things like this. Let’s see where this could go to.
“There will be a lot of people who will need a lot of help, if not more, when we get back to some sort of normality-whatever that will be.
“So, if this can turn into something bigger, I am all for it.”
If you would like to support Matt go the extra mile visit https://www.facebook.com/donate/830136384173691/ to make donations. He has also created a hashtag for the marathon cycle #coroNOvirus
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