Freddie’s back garden ultra-marathon raises over £2,000 for NHS charity

A long distance runner and husband of a Wrexham hospital doctor has raised over £2,000 for a North Wales NHS charity after completing a 46-mile ultra-marathon – in his back garden.

Business consultant Freddie Bennett has previously crossed 200 miles of the Sahara desert on the Marathon Des Sables and holds two Guinness world records.

One was as the fastest fisherman to run a marathon while wearing a pair of wellies, but running round his garden in Liverpool’s Aigburth district posed its own challenges for the 38-year-old as he ran for 13 hours from dawn to dusk.

The money will go to Awyr Las, the North Wales NHS Charity.

 Freddie, said: “My wife, Dr Sarah Moll, works at the Maelor Hospital in Wrexham and she’s been moved from the children’s department to help out during the Covid-19 so I’m seeing first-hand what the effect of all this is.

“Running for 13 hours seems like a lot but it’s only like doing a shift in the hospital saving lives and battling this pandemic.

“We’ve also got two kids and they and others are getting scared so I wanted to show that we might be locked down but we’re not knocked down, we can still make a difference and raise money for a good cause.

“I don’t like to do things the easy way but now my garden looks like a speedway track.”

Wife Sarah said: “Our lawn is wrecked but it was for a good cause so it was worth it and I’m very proud of him and Oliver too.

“I work in community paediatrics but I’ve been redeployed to theatre and thankfully it doesn’t seem to be affecting children as much as adults so we haven’t been under the same stress as intensive care.

“But it’s been amazing the support that we’re receiving. There’s such a lot of affection for the NHS and the neighbours have been out clapping him.

“The husband of one of the ward nurses at the Maelor was in intensive care for three weeks and he did a Facetime for Freddie from the ward.”

Kirsty Thomson, head of fund-raising for Awyr Las, said: “This was a fantastic effort by Freddie and by Oliver as well and it just shows the level of affection people have for the NHS.

“We’re so grateful to him and to so many others whose efforts are ensuring the Covid-19 appeal will make an impact across North Wales right now and in the future.

“Our focus at the moment is on the immediate well-being for patients and NHS staff affected by Covid-19 but longer term we are looking at how patients can be helped after they leave hospital and how we can provide for the mental health of staff and those in our communities in future.”

Donations for Freddie’s Garden Ultra Marathon can go to https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lockdownmarathon