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MARK COMPLETES GYM CHALLENGE

Midlands Co-operative foodstore manager Mark Green completed last week’s five-day sporting challenge a day early – and raised over £1,400 to help disabled and terminally ill children in the Midlands.

Mark, aged 48, is manager of the Midlands Co-operative Society foodstore in Atherstone, Warwickshire; he took a week off work to raise money for Newlife Foundation by completing an extreme gym challenge after breaking both arms and legs in a motorbike accident last year.

Mark started his challenge on Monday 10 September at Bannatyne’s Health Club in Tamworth and finished a day early, completing all his targets on Thursday 13 September. Mark swam 12-and-a-half miles, cycled 150 miles, rowed 100,000 metres and completed 2,000 press-ups and 4,000 sit-ups.

Mark Green said: “A year ago I was lying in a hospital bed after breaking both my arms and legs following a motorbike accident; completing this sporting challenge and raising over £1,400 for disabled children has been a real privilege.”

“I would like to thank everyone who has supported and sponsored me during this challenge, especially my colleagues at Midlands Co-operative and Newlife Foundation as well as the customers who have passed on their best wishes. It has been a very tiring few days and without the encouragement of the trainers at Bannatyne’s Health Club I wouldn’t have been able to finish my challenge a day early.

He added: “I have been at the gym from 6.30am to 7.30pm each day, spending up to two hours at a time in the pool, three hours on the bike and two-and-a-half hours on the rowing machine; and that’s before I started on the press ups and sit-ups! I have lost five pounds in body weight during the challenge but I have actually got stronger as the week has gone on. I finished the challenge on Thursday with a five-mile swim.”

Newlife Fundraising Manager Nora Smith said: “Mark took on an enormous challenge to help support the charity, given that he had barely completed his recovery. We can’t thank him enough for his commitment and we are grateful for all the support he has had from family and friends, colleagues, Co-op customers and the staff and members of Bannatyne’s gym in Tamworth.

“It will be several weeks before we know the total amount raised as a result of his heroic efforts, but 100 per cent will directly help to provide essential specialist equipment for a child or children in the Midlands Co-operative Society trading area. A big ‘thank you’ from everyone at Newlife.”

Michael Spencer, Head of Retail Trading at Midlands Co-operative Society, added: “We are all very proud of Mark’s amazing achievements. This challenge is a fantastic example of what can be done with a lot of hard work and commitment – well done Mark.”

It’s not too late to make a donation, you can log on to Mark’s on-line JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/Mark-Green8.

Pictured: Mark Green, (centre) with Co-op colleagues.

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