A man from Bromley plans to run non-stop for 24 hours to raise money for a children’s mental health charity.

John Diamante will be taking on the challenge on June 17 to try and raise as much money as possible for Bromley-Y.

The 49-year-old is pushing himself to run at least 100 miles by the end of his 24 hours.

John will start his run on Friday at 9.30am and will do repeated laps around Norman Park.

He is aiming to finish the next morning at 9.30am alongside the regular Park Run runners.

Volunteers from the Bromley Veterans Athletic Club have offered to run a few laps each with John throughout the night and day to keep him safe and with good company.

John said: “You know what I never run alone.

“I am so pleased that some of the members have made themselves available to that they can run with me.”

John has been a member of the Bromley Veterans Athletic Club for more than four years now and has now completed around 450 park runs, with 341 in Bromley.

He started doing the park run every Saturday after quitting smoking and alcohol.

John told the News Shopper: “I had never run before when I first started – I used to be a smoker and I also drank a lot.

“In 2010 my little girl said ‘dad stop smoking’ so I did just that.

“I stop smoking and alcohol altogether without any medicine and I start running.

“I couldn’t even run for two minutes at first.

“I have three kids, and this run is for them as well.

“Now, everywhere I go, no matter what I am doing, I wake up on a Saturday and go for a park run.

“I did a 50-mile run from Manchester to Liverpool a few months ago and the next day I woke up and went to the park run in Manchester."

John has never done a 24-hour run before, but he is confident that he is well prepared for the challenge.

Last Thursday he ran 40 miles from Bromley to Sevenoaks and back in again which took just over eight hours.

John has previously done a 100 Kilometre run in Norman Park for a charity supporting seafarers in the Philippines where he raised more than £3,000.

He explained: “When you are running, it is all about your mind game.

“Your mind wants you to rest, but you just push through that feeling and keep going.

“It is so good for our mental health and that is why I am doing it for the kids and Bromley Y.

“I am so looking forward to helping this charity and you never know, maybe one day one of these kids will also do a bit of running.”

The fundraiser for Bromley Y currently sits at £859 with a set target of £1,000.

 

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