A RUNNING coach with nearly 30 years’ experience and dozens of halfmarathons under his belt will tackle his second full marathon for a cancer charity.

John Brant will run the London Marathon later this month to raise money for the North of England Children’s Cancer Research Fund.

Mr Brant has been raising funds for the charity, based at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary, for 12 years, following the death of a friend.

He said: “There was a lad, aged 19, I worked with when I was at Cleveland Bridge, in Darlington. He was raising money for the charity but was killed in a car crash.

“I stepped in and took over and have been raising money for them ever since.”

Mr Brant, who coaches at Darlington Harriers, has completed 13 Great North Runs and nearly 20 Redcar Half-Marathons among his races.

In 2006, he completed his first marathon – the London Marathon – in a time of 4 hours 19 minutes 8 seconds.

He decided to enter his second marathon, on Sunday, April 26, after his friend’s son died from cancer last year. He was also 19.

Mr Brant, 59, now works at Mech-Tool Engineering, in Whessoe Road, Darlington, which has promised to double all his fundraising.

To sponsor Mr Brant, contact him at 48 Ridgeway, Darlington, DL3 0SF, or call 01325-367790 or 07751-181934.