An Ilkley soldier is running the London Marathon this month to raise money for a charity that supports those who have served in the Armed Forces.

Marco Turnbull, at 19, will be the youngest runner doing the 26 mile course around the capital on April 23rd in aid of the SSAFA, which provides lifelong support to those who have served or who are serving in the British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Marines or the Royal Air Force, and to their families.

Marco joined the Royal Engineer Regiment last year and is aiming to raise £2,000 for the charity, which was founded in 1885.

And the cause is very close to his heart. Marco said: “I come from an Army family and have seen what PTSD and trauma sustained in service can do to individuals and their family. SSAFA is always there to help, so I want to raise money for them now, in case I or my friends need them in the future.”

Marco is the first to admit he’s not a natural-born runner. He said: “Honestly, I didn’t like running when I was at school in Giggleswick, but now I really can’t stand it. But things worth doing aren’t the easy things in life. I set myself this challenge and I want to raise funds for SSAFA, so I’m keeping at it and can’t wait for that finish line.

“Luckily, it is not too difficult to do the training as we get some time during our working day to maintain fitness levels. The trickiest bit is raising the funds for the charity.”

He’s come up with some novel ideas to help him get the money rolling in. He said: “I went to Crufts to help SSAFA with its stand and got quite a few donations. I’m running a cute pet competition on Instagram, @ssafa_pets and I’ll be washing cars at work at RAF Wyton next week.

“My brothers are helping by taking bets on where I will be sick in the race. They have called it ‘The Green Mile’ because I always seem to puke when I’m running distance!”

Marco is currently stationed at RAF Wyton in Cambridgeshire and is hoping his home town will join in the support and help him raise as much as he can for the SSAFA.

If you would like to support Marco please donate at: https://2023tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/marco-turnbull or find him on Instagram.