2020 is Sport Relief year and, as you know, I can’t resist a challenge (or two…or three…or….). At Comic Relief (the people who invented Sports Relief and where I now have the privilege of working) – I am astounded on a daily basis by the extraordinary and impressive challenges that incredibly generous and talented people undertake across the globe. From swimming the length of the Thames to 43 marathons in 51 days ...to the recent Namibia challenge - it’s astonishing!

How could your average accountant from Wimbledon ever possibly hope to garner heroic support from his small (but perfect) fan base and raise money for Sports Relief, when up against such overachievers??

And yet….my inner, mad English-(South African)-man has had an inspirational thought….

What I lack in celebrity status, maybe I can make up for in sheer volume? Would it inspire your generosity if I said that in 2020 I was going to swim the channel, climb Kilimanjaro, cycle 200 miles in a single day, do an Ironman and then throw in a 3 peaks summit challenge and a dash from London to Paris? Would it seal the deal and have you reaching for your wallets with gasps of appreciation?

I thought as much! 

So that’s what I’ve decided to do…. there are one or two smaller technicalities* but please don’t let that slow you down from clicking on my Sport Relief Justgiving link and encouraging and motivating me in my array of challenges.

THANK YOU – I cannot wait to see how much I can raise for this excellent cause!

* small print details – always read the small print….

- Ironman (ok half) – a half-Ironman triathlon is a 2km swim, 90km cycle and 21km run

- Swim the channel? – well I’m going to swim the distance of the channel swim (34km) in a pool across a week. That’s about 5km a day for a week.

- 200 mile cycle in a day – (I’m actually a bit scared of this one).  I’ll be doing 10 X high intensity indoor cycle rides of at least 20 km each in a day. They call these virtual rides ‘Sufferfests’ and the clue is definitely in the name…

- 3 peaks – this will actually be the genuine and famous 3 peaks challenge. Climbing the highest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales but in 24 hours.

- Climb Kilimanjaro? – Erm, I’ve previously done the real deal back in 2003 but funds are a bit tight right now, so I’m going to climb the equivalent of Kilimanjaro, 5,895m, up some stairs in a building, across 2 days.

- London to Paris Cycle – again, the real deal! You should probably sponsor me just for this one alone…..

- Please watch this space there might be a few random, extra challenges thrown in

- I might also be joined on some of these challenges by my mates… or anyone keen, really

A bit about Sport Relief/ Comic Relief

Since 1985 Comic Relief has raised and invested over £1bn. This has been used to tackle poverty and injustice all over the world by funding local change makers. In this time Comic Relief has helped improve the lives of over 90m people.