Published: April 15, 2008
Burnham-On-Sea runner raises over £600 from London marathon

A father-of-two from Burnham-On-Sea who ran the London Marathon dressed as a banana on Sunday (April 13th) successfully completed the event in aid of Weston Hospicecare and the Leukaemia Research Trust.

Iain Turner, who is a member of Burnham Harriers running club, decided to participate in aid of Weston Hospicecare as the wife of his friend and Harriers’ Team Captain, Mick Terry, received care from the Hospice.

The sponsorship money Iain raised, which is expected to be more than £600, will be equally split between the two charities.

The 40-year-old completed his first full marathon in four and a half hours said: "Running the London Marathon was a truly amazing experience and I am still buzzing from it."

"Participating in a banana suit made no difference to my running ability. I found the run most enjoyable, despite the heavy rain at times. Four and a half months of hard training meant I was in good shape."

"The level of crowd interaction was tremendous and made the world of difference. I was stopped three times for interviews and for pictures to be taken."

Iain, a Fisheries Officer for the Environment Agency, has already received more than £600 in sponsorship and is expecting more donations to come in.

"I ran it dressed as a banana to tie in with the Leukaemia Research Trust’s theme, Banana Army."

Our photo shows runners Iain Turner from Burnham-On-Sea with Ken Creffield from Uphill and Ron Wootten from Weston who are all running in aid of Weston Hospicecare.