A FATHER of two from East Morton finished this year's London Marathon in a respectable time of three hours 48 minutes to raise cash for Manorlands.

Jonathan Gallucci, 32, who had never run a marathon before, has so far managed to collect a fundraising sum of over £1,500.

He said he felt relieved to have made it across the finishing line.

"I wanted to do the marathon in under four hours and I managed that, which I'm pleased about," he said.

"It went really well and the number of people lining the streets to cheer us was just amazing. It was an incredible experience.

"I was struggling a bit around mile 24 and I don't remember much of the last mile apart from the marker signs!

"I've been running for a few years since my kids were born in order to stay active.

"But when I entered the ballot for the London Marathon I never expected to get a place, because friends of mine who'd entered didn't get through.

"I'd only done ten kilometre runs before – those were the furthest distances I'd completed. But I had a 16-week training programme for my preparation.

"I ran the Keighley 10K last year and raised nearly £800 for Manorlands then, and I did the same race again this year as part of my training for London."

Mr Gallucci, who works as a project manager for Asda's head office, added that he had chosen to back the hospice because his grandmother, who died in October 2015, was cared for at the facility.

He added that his grandfather, who has cancer, may also be going into Manorlands.

After reaching the finish in London Mr Gallucci celebrated his feat with his family, including his wife Ceri, four-year-old daughter Lucy and two-year-old son Jacob.

His mother, Jayne, said she was very proud of her son's achievement.

*Do you want to strap on your trainers and run for Manorlands?

People wanting to get fit and support a great local cause at the same time can take part in the Plusnet Leeds Half Marathon on May 14.

It is one of the highlights of Leeds sporting calendar and attracts huge crowds.

People interested in running for Sue Ryder Manorlands can visit sueryder.org/LeedsHalf for more details.

If this event does not suit people's timetable, they can instead consider the Asda Foundation Leeds 10K on July 9. Entries are now open and fundraisers are encouraged to sign up as soon as possible to secure a place. Visit sueryder.org/Leeds10k for details.