A YOUNG athlete is so determined to raise money for a the cardiac unit which saved his father's life he has decided to complete the Great North Run - twice.

Adam Harker, 16, is to compete in the Junior Great North Run, a 4km lap around Gateshead and Newcastle quayside, on Saturday, October 5.

But he will turn 17 the following day, which makes him eligible to take part in the senior event, a half-marathon. He will become the first runner to participate in both Great North Runs.

Adam, whose family live in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, is running to raise money for the cardiac ward at South Cleveland Hospital, Middlesbrough.

He hopes to raise about £1,000 as a thank-you to the doctors and nurses who saved his father's life.

His father, Paul, was a good runner, once finishing in the top 50 in the Great North Run and winning the first Darlington 10km road race.

But he suffered a serious heart attack in 1998 and became one of the first people in the region to be fitted with an implantable defibrillator, a tiny heart-start machine.

Adam, a member of Aycliffe Harriers, is a keen runner who trains almost every day, but even he is daunted by the prospect of his double challenge.

He said: "It was my dad's idea to do both of them. It's my birthday on the Sunday, so I decided to do it to raise money.

"I'm looking forward to the junior race on the Saturday and I'm going to run it as quick as I can, but I'm not really looking forward to Sunday. It's a bit far, but I will do it even if I have to just jog round."

The BUPA Great North Run is the world's largest half-marathon, with 47,000 runners expected to take part.

The 13.1 mile race starts in Newcastle, takes in the famous Tyne Bridge and finishes along the South Shields sea front.

A spokesman for sponsors BUPA said: "It is the runners who participate for a cause close to their hearts, like Adam Harker, that really make the event for us and have helped turn the BUPA Great North Run into Britain's biggest practical health initiative.

"We are delighted Adam has taken this opportunity to compete in both the junior and main races. We wish him all the best with the races, his fundraising efforts for South Cleveland Hospital - and hope he has a very happy 17th birthday.

It's bananas and pasta for my team

CANCER expert Professor John Burn is ready to dish out pasta and bananas at Cancer Research UK's BUPA Great North Run party.

Professor Burn, who hit the headlines last week with news that green bananas and cold porridge could help keep cancer at bay, will be hosting the pre-event party for Cancer Research UK runners on October 5.

It will take place at the Centre for Life, where Prof Burn is head of Cancer Research UK's Clinical Cancer Genetics Network.

Prof Burn said: "We are very grateful to everyone who has already signed up to raise money for Cancer Research UK through the BUPA Great North Run."

Cancer Research UK's Clinical Cancer Genetics Network has teams in eight centres around the UK, carrying out research with families affected by hereditary forms of cancer. This is one of the many projects funded by money raised from the BUPA Great North Run.

As a veteran of the BUPA Great North Run - this will the 12th year he has taken part - Prof Burn is also encouraging anyone who has signed up for the event to join the Cancer Research UK team.